Promises Should Always Be Fulfilled
by DanTE1203
Summary: After an investigation about a weapons smuggling group in Yoshiwara, Gintoki and Tsukuyo learned that the joint forces of the Kiheitai and the Harusame were behind it. Their plan is to get as many weapons as they can to initiate their plan of attacking Edo to lure out the Tendoshu and destroy them along with it... CH6: the Shiroyasha on a rampage... Tsukuyo vs Bansai... R
1. Brthdays Should Always Be Celebrated

**Promises Should Always Be Fulfilled**

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**A/N: **I do not own Gintama or any of its characters. I just own the OC's. **Rated T** for strong language and fight scenes.

**Genre: **Humor, Romance, Hurt/Comfort.

So this fanfic is set after the Courtesan of a Nation and the School of Beam Saber Arc so that the new characters and prior events can be in here. It will involve many pairings especially **GinxTsu, OkixKagu, and others**. Hope that you guys will enjoy this. Oh and don't forget to rate and review.

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**Chapter 1: Birthdays should always be celebrated with a cake.**

* * *

The Joui War, an event that marked the decline of the samurai that was caused by the Amanto. They are aliens who came to Edo and planned to invade it. Willing to negotiate about the invasion, the Bakufu that was led by the 13th shogun, Tokugawa Sadasada decided to make terms with the Amanto to stop the hostility between the two parties. The samurai rebels however saw this as an act of betrayal towards them by selling them out. Outraged, the samurai and the other rebels banded together and started attacking a lot of Amanto factions by themselves. With each rebellion that broke out, the relationship between the Amanto and the Bakufu started to deteriorate. Seeing that there is no point in talking to the Joui factions, Sadasada decided to kill all of the rebels and the people who were a part of the rebellion to prevent any future rebellions to grow. That act will forever be remembered as the Kansei Purge. Having a lot of their comrades killed, the Joui patriots made one last stand to avenge their fallen comrades and take back their freedom. It was a losing battle for the rebels as they were no match for the sheer technology and weapons that the Amanto had in possession of but still, they fought to the death, embracing the code of the bushido that they have sworn to uphold.

On a battlefield that was filled with corpses and crows that are feeding on the remains, a lone, young boy with a distinct silver perm was sitting down beside a corpse while eating some leftover rice ball. He was covered in dirt and blood and was carrying a katana that was obviously too big for him to handle properly.

Little did the boy know that amidst the lifeless remains and the noise made by the crows, a long gray-haired man was strolling in the area, going closer towards him. Once the man was close enough, he placed his hand on the boy's head, interrupting the meal that he was having.

Curious and at the same time irritated, the boy immediately looked to the direction of the hand that grabbed him. He then saw the man. He was wearing a gray coat, a haori and has a katana on his waist, a typical image of a samurai.

"I came here after hearing about a corpse-eating demon… Would that be you?" asked the long-haired man. But the boy remained silent, giving an affirmation to the man's hoax. "A rather cute demon…"

Upon hearing those words, the boy quickly moved away from the man's grip and slowly took out his katana from its sheath. Seeing the boy preparing his weapon, the man could see that it was covered in blood all over.

"Did you also take that from a corpse? A single child stripping corpses to protect himself, is it?" asked the man as the child went to a fighting stance. "That's very impressive. However, you no longer need that sword."

The boy was confused on what the man had said. Was he going to kill him quick and put him out his misery or will he tell him that no matter what he does, it will be useless against him?

Slowly, the man went for his katana and removed it from its sheath, making the boy more nervous than he already is. "A sword that is only swung in self-defense, while fearing others…"

The boy was ready. If it was his time to die, he will die fighting to his last breath. But what the man did next really surprised the boy. He threw his blade to him. This made the boy lose his footing in the ground but fortunately, he quickly recovered from it.

"I shall give you my sword," said the man as he turned his back on the child and walked away. "If you wish to properly use it, then come with me…"

The boy took a couple of minutes to think but ultimately, he decided to follow the man. Besides, where else will he go? Seeing that the child was beside him, the man can't help but smile in delight.

"I see, so you decided to go with me? If that is the case, may I know your name, boy?"

"Gi… Gintoki Sakata… Wha… what's yours?" asked the boy.

"It's Katsura…" replied the man.

"What? Zura?"

"Zura ja nai, Katsura da."

"Zura?"

"Ja nai, Katsura da."

"Zura?!"

Suddenly, a white penguin/duck-like creature appeared beside Gintoki, holding a white sign board. "_Not Zura, KATSURA." _

This went on and on and on until…

* * *

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!" screamed our favorite samurai who had the oh-so-distinct silver perm named Gintoki Sakata as he quickly rose up from his futon, breathing and perspiring heavily.

_It's just a nightmare… a stupid, twisted, idiotic nightmare._

"OI, YOU STUPID AUTHOR, DON'T F*CKIN' MESS MY BACK STORY ESPECIALLY BY PUTTING THOSE TWO IDIOTS IN IT! EVEN THOUGH THIS IS JUST A FAN FICTION, IT'S NOT F*CKIN' COOL!"

Suddenly, the fusuma of his room slowly opened revealing a drowsy, pink-haired adolescent girl.

"Gin-chan, could you please shut up? It's still early in the morning and young girls like me need some sleep to grow properly –aru," said Kagura who was rubbing her eyes in between her yawns.

"Sorry about that Kagura-chan, I just had a stupid dream, that's all."

"Okay, fine. Just keep it down would ya?" She yawned. "See ya again in a couple of hours, Gin-chan." And with that, the young Yato exited his room and went back to the closet.

Gintoki lied back down to his futon to get some sleep again. But no matter how much he tried, he just couldn't do so. Thirty minutes have passed and still, he failed. Realizing that it was going nowhere, he decided to get up and proceed to the kitchen to get some of his favorite strawberry milk. He then went to the balcony of the Yorozuya Gin-chan, rested his body on the railings and stared at the horizon, waiting for the sun to rise while enjoying his favorite beverage.

During his stay there, he could not help but wonder on why did he dreamt of that moment again and what was the meaning of it, except for the Katsura part of course. Was it telling him that something was that has a connection to it is going to happen or will something entirely different happen?

"Shouyou-sensei, what are you trying to show me?" asked the samurai to himself as he emptied the carton that he was drinking.

* * *

It was already past eight o'clock when Kagura woke up. Upon sliding the cabinet door open, she was greeted by the image of a giant white-furred dog, licking her face continuously.

"Alright, alright, stop it Sadaharu. It's good to see you too –aru," greeted the young Yato, petting her beloved pet in the process.

"_Ohayou gozaimasu!_ You guys awake yet?" asked a pair of glasses wearing a young boy who just entered their home.

"OI, WHAT DO YOU MEAN A PAIR OF GLASSES WEARING A YOUNG BOY?! IT'S THE OTHER WAY AROUND! GET THINGS RIGHT, YOU LOUSY WRITER!"

"But Shinpachi, that has always been your trademark ever since the start of our show and even in the other fan fictions that has been written with you or us in it –aru."

"Oi, oi what's with all the fuss about Kagura? Yo _megane_, what's up?" asked Gintoki who just entered the room while picking his nose.

"EH?! WHAT'S WITH THIS MEGANE THING GIN-SAN? YOU'VE ALWAYS CALLED ME _'PATTSUAN'_ REMEMBER?"

"Nope, I always called you megane since day one because that's the thing that stands out of you the most. Isn't it, Kagura?"

The young Yato nodded her head, agreeing on the said assumption. Seeing that it was a losing battle, Shinpachi let down a deep sigh and just sat down on their kotatsu, putting down a plastic bag that he was carrying on it.

"Anyway, I brought you guys breakfast since I know that you're too lazy to cook for yourselves."

Upon placing the bag on the kotatsu, Kagura suddenly smelled something delicious coming out from it. Curious, she decided to ask Shinpachi what it was. The young boy said that he brought some pork katsudon for breakfast on his way here.

Gintoki somewhat disagreed on what the naïve, cherry boy (as he refers to him) said about them. "Oi oi, I agree that Kagura is really a sloth, but I always cook when there is something for me to cook, which is impossible since we haven't had a customer for a long time."

"That's right Shinpachi. Remember, a few weeks before we're even splitting dog food with Sadaharu 'coz we've gotten really broke –aru. Oh by the way, WHO THE HELL ARE YOU CALLING A SLOTH, YOU FREAKING BUM?! YOU'RE THE ONE WHO'S DOING NOTHING EXCEPT READING YOUR STUPID JUMP MAGAZINES AND DRINK STRAWBERRY MILK! YOU'RE ALMOST CLOSE TO BEING A MADAO LIKE HASEGAWA-SAN!"

"NO WAY THAT I'M GONNA END UP LIKE THAT HOPELESS BASTARD! First, we have a job…"

"That has no customers…" butted Kagura in.

"Second, we have a home."

"That you can barely pay…"

"And finally, I DON'T WEAR SUNGLASSES!"

"But you did wear goggles at first."

"Oi stop it! Both of you!" shouted Shinpachi who had enough of their bickering. The two in return obeyed his command and sat down at the kotatsu, pouting their faces away from one another like little kids.

"Anyway, Gin-san, we finally have a job."

"Re… really? Ah, finally we're gonna have some cash to spend and I can enjoy another glass of chocolate parfait once again."

"And I can buy myself a lot of sukonbu to munch on!"

"Woof!"

"Oh, and more pet food for Sadaharu!"

The young samurai-in-training was somewhat astounded on how fast these guys can make up with one other when it comes to food and a job just like always.

"So Pattsuan, what are we going to do this time?"

"Uhm… here…" Shinpachi then handed an envelope to Gintoki.

Upon seeing the name of the sender, the silver-permed samurai began to have that irritating dead fish-eye look, threw it away from him and lied down to his side and proceeded into reading his favourite JUMP magazine instead.

"Oi, Gin-san, what the heck are you doing? This came from Hinowa-san. Aren't you interested to see her request?" asked Shinpachi.

"Nope. Whenever a request comes from her, we always get in trouble and I always get beaten up by that hellish drunken terminator. And besides, she hasn't actually paid us when we do her requests. She just gives us coupons that can only be used in Yoshiwara and cannot be used to compensate with our daily needs and even pay for our rent."

"Aw come on, Gin-chan, don't be such a stick in the mud –aru. It would be nice to visit Tsukki, Hinowa and Seita again," explained Kagura. "Anyway, what's their request Shinpachi?"

Having no idea on what the request was, the young boy wearing a pair of glasses _(ah finally, you got it right!) _grabbed the envelope from the floor and opened it.

* * *

_Dear Yorozuya Gin-chan,_

_Please come to my shop as soon as you have read this letter. It is very important. I promise to pay you handsomely _

_this time._

_P.S. Also, please bring a cake from Kabuki-chou._

_Yours truly, _

_Hinowa_

* * *

"I wonder what's so important that she wanted us to come immediately and why did she want us to bring a cake?" asked Shinpachi.

Upon hearing the words 'handsomely rewarded', Gintoki quickly ran outside without saying a word to his younger members, leaving them both in a somewhat confused state.

"Oi Shinpachi, where do you think Gin-chan went?"

"Probably to go buy a cake I guess… because of that… reward… Anyway, let's just go out and look for him just to make sure. But before that let's have brea—"

Just as when Shinpachi was about to mention the word, he saw Kagura hogging down on the pork katsudon that was supposed to be their breakfast.

"OI KAGURA-CHAN, WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU DOING!? THOSE THREE PACKS OF KATSUDONS WERE SUPPOSED TO BE SHARED AMONG US!"

"What?! I thought you've already eaten at your place! And there are only two packs in here!" explained the young girl.

Shinpachi was surprised that Kagura would think about the idea of him eating ahead of them since he did buy breakfast for them but what surprised him the most was the fact that Kagura only ate two packs. He wondered on what happened to the other pack. His Yato companion however did not seem to mind and continued to chow down on the pork katsudon and the rice that went along with it.

Sighing deeply, the megane boy knew that there was nothing he could do anymore. Arguing about it would just be pointless. So, he just let her have it.

"Well, just finish those quickly so we can fin—"

"Done."

"What the—?! YOU ALREADY FINISHED THEM BOTH?"

"Yup, but I'm still so hungry… Let's go find Gin-chan quickly so we can go to Hinowa's and eat some more!" proposed the young Yato.

"Alright, alright. Man, what kind of a stomach do you pack inside there, Kagura-chan?"

"A bottomless pit –aru."

* * *

Gintoki had just arrived outside the bakeshop, excited to go pick a cake since Hinowa said that he will be rewarded handsomely this time. When he finally entered the store, he immediately went to the front desk to order.

"Uhm… Excuse me… I'm here to buy a cake."

"What flavor would you like, sir?" asked the sales clerk.

"Let me have a straw…" Suddenly, the sliver permed samurai stopped on his tracks. He did not know the flavor that was stated in the letter.

"Oh no, what kind of cake did she want me to get? Think Gintoki, think. Remember what was written there… Okay… Handsome… Reward… Damn it! That's was the only thing I can remember… This is not good at all… What if I chose the wrong cake? She might not even give me a single dime…"

"Oi Danna, fancy meeting you here."

Hearing the voice coming out of nowhere, the Yorozuya Danna looked to the direction where he heard it, only to find a yawning Shinsengumi officer who had light brown hair and was wearing a red sleeping mask on top of it.

"Souichiro-kun, what are you doing here?"

"How many times do I have to repeat myself to you, it's S-O-U-G-O Okita and to answer your question, I'm just picking up some treats that I regularly take during this time of the day. What are you doing here?"

"Well, I'm kind of picking up a cake for Yoshiwara."

"Yoshiwara, huh?" Then, a thought came to the young Shinsengumi's mind and he, in turn, made an insulting face to Gintoki. "Oi Danna, don't tell me that the cake you're picking is for that blond woman who's with you when you and the others were imprisoned at the Shogun's place… I didn't know that you were into those kinds of women. I mean, I can't say I blame you if you got the thing for her."

The Yorozuya boss was of course agitated by Okita's allegation. "Tha… That is not what this is meant for… I'll have you know that this is a request from Yoshiwara."

Okita did not mind what Gintoki had said. Instead, he continued to tease him about her to pleasure his sick, sadistic self.

"Sure it is… Now what was her name again that I've heard from China? Tu… Tus… Tus… ky…"

"IT'S T – S – U - K – K – I, YOU BASTARD! IT LITERALLY MEANS 'THE MOON!'"

"See, you obviously like her. You even got mad when her name is mispronounced and you even know the value of it."

"WHY, YOU LITTLE…"

Pushed to his extremes, Gintoki gripped the sadistic boy's neck with both his hands, squeezing away his air supply until the last breath. (**Note: This is a parody from The Simpsons when Homer chokes Bart.)**

* * *

Meanwhile in the red-light district, Yoshiwara, a blond kunoichi who was wearing a black, one-sleeved kimono designed with autumn leaves, has a slender yet curvaceous body and has two distinctive scars running horizontally and vertically in her face, was walking through its busy streets. Tsukuyo, the leader of the para-military group of Yoshiwara called the Hyakka, was conducting an investigation involving the smuggling of illegal weapons in the said district along with two of her subordinates.

"So, do we have any leads yet to the syndicate?" asked the Shinigami Dayuu as she puffed a smoke from her kiseru.

"I'm afraid not, Kashira. It seems that they are very careful on their actions and how they operate in the district ever since we caught a couple of their men a few weeks ago," replied one of the Hyakka members.

She let out a sigh. "In that case, we have to double our efforts. We still do not know what their reason is for smugglin' those weapons so… ouch!" The sudden outburst of pain was caused by Tsukuyo biting her own tongue by accident, making her subordinates giggle.

Their reactions made their Kashira feel uncomfortable and as a result, she started to get pink all over. "THE 'ELL'S SO FUNNY, HUH?"

"Well, you know the saying right, Kashira?" replied one of the Hyakkas.

"And what sayin' is that, huh?"

"You know, when a female bites her tongue in accident, someone is actually thinking about her romantically right now."

"Ooh, maybe it's one of those regulars at Tsubaki. It's probably that handsome guy who's always checking her out while she's hanging out in there," whispered by the other member because she knows that their Kashira doesn't want these kinds of conversations about her."Or maybe it's Sakata-sama," said the two in sync softly yet giggling louder.

"WOULD YOU TWO JUST CUT IT OUT AND GET BACK TO WORK!" shouted the enraged Tsukuyo, separating the two former courtesans from gossiping with each other and getting back their attention in the process.

"Ya' know what, why don't you two just head to the eastern part of the district while I stay here? That way, we can investigate faster. Is that understood?"

_"Ryoukai!"_

Obeying their Kashira's order, the two went off.

Morning passed by and Tsukuyo still didn't have any leads involving the syndicate responsible for the smuggling. During her stroll, she came upon a dirty little puppy licking on a puddle of a carton of strawberry milk that fell over. It had white, wavy fur and short flopping ears. The dog noticed that he was being watched. He lifted his head and stared at the lavender eyes of the Shinigami Dayuu with his red, distinctive dead-fish eyes.

For some reason, the first thing that popped in her mind when she looked at the puppy was Gintoki. **(I mean come on, that's just plain obvious.) **At first, she just ignored it and told herself that it was just a coincidence. She even tried to walk pass by the puppy. But seeing the condition that it was in, she could not help but feel sorry for it. She could see herself in the mutt, for she was in the same situation before. As a child, before she met Hinowa, Tsukuyo experienced how cruel the world was when she was left all alone without anybody to rely on but herself.

She slowly crouched down to his level and hoisted him in her eye level. The dog, in return, just stared at her, not changing its expression whatsoever.

"At such a young age, ya' were left all alone. Ya' know what, I was in your shoes before and I didn't like it one bit. But lucky for ya', I won't let that happen to ya'. Starting today, yer' gonna be livin' with me and ma' family. Does that sound good to ya?"

The dog barked. His facial expressions told Tsukuyo that he was happy about it.

"Since yer' gonna be with me, you should have a name… Hmm… how does 'Shiro' (**Note**: **white**) sound to ya?" asked the Shinigami Dayuu.

The dog barked in approval yet again but this time, he licked Tsukuyo's face, telling her that he loved it making her giggle.

"Alright. Shiro, let's get ya' to yer' new home." After that, Tsukuyo and her new pet headed over to Hinowa's house.

* * *

"_Tadaima!_" announced Tsukuyo upon arriving home.

"Be right there on a sec," replied a soft female voice from inside the house. After a while, she was greeted by a beautiful woman in a wheelchair and a young boy with light brown hair behind her, pushing her chair.

"_Okaerinasai_, Tsukki," greeted Hinowa.

"You're home earlier than usual, Tsukuyo-nee. Is there something that happened?" asked Seita.

"Actually, I brought a friend along with me." She then moved her hand in front of her, revealing the puppy that she picked up a while ago. "His name is Shiro."

Seita admired the puppy in front of him. "Wow, he's so cute, a bit dirty but still…"

"Yes, I can see that, Seita. He is rather adorable."

"Uhm… Hinowa, I found him roamin' on the streets alone without anything to eat. If it's okay with ya'… can we… uhm…" But before Tsukuyo could finish her sentence, Seita immediately jumped in.

"Can we keep him, Kaa-chan? Please, please, pretty please?" begged the boy who was jumping up and down in excitement.

Sighing deeply, Hinowa knew that she had no chance against the two on the matter at hand. Besides, she also liked the idea of having a pet inside the house to make it livelier.

"Alright, alright. Calm down, Seita-kun. It looks like I'm at a disadvantage about this since the vote is three to none."

Realizing that his mother had given her approval, the young boy leaped in joy because now he has a pet and a new friend to play with. Tsukuyo decided to hand over Shiro since she can see that Seita couldn't wait to play with him. But before Seita could hold him, his mother had something else on her mind.

"Hold on, Seita. Before you play with Shiro, take him outside and give him a bath first. It looks like he has not taken a bath yet for a long time. We can't have a dirty dog running around the house now, can we?"

With a simple nod by Seita, his so-called big sister continued on handing him Shiro. After that, the two went to the backyard to wash the dog off.

Tsukuyo was happy when he saw the joy in Seita's eyes when she brought Shiro home. Hinowa was happy as well to find out that Tsukuyo has a soft spot for animals.

"Tsukki, I'm really glad that you decided to adopt that puppy."

"I knew what he went through before so I decided to take him in. I was surprised though that ya' allowed us to keep him without any hesitation."

"Well, consider that as my present to you."

Hinowa's response made the Shinigami Dayuu confused. Why would she give her a present? She was sure to herself that today was not any Yoshiwarian holiday that she knew of. So what was it? Her pondering was finally broken when Hinowa spoke.

"Tsukki, you don't know what today is, do you?" asked the former Sun of Yoshiwara. Tsukuyo just stood in silence, still confused on what she was trying to say. Her ignorance only made the older woman giggle.

"Oh my, I can't believe that you've forgotten about your own birthday," revealed Hinowa.

Tsukuyo was surprised to know that today was her birthday, let alone somebody remembering it. Because of her dedication to her job of being Yoshiwara's protector, she hasn't paid attention to any of the past occasions that have come and gone.

"_Arigatou_ Hinowa, for rememberin' it for me and letting us keep Shiro. I really appreciate it."

"No problem at all. Besides, when you look closer at him, he does look like Gin-san, don't you think?"

Hinowa's statement hit her on the spot. In response, Tsukyo started to get pink, embarrassed at what the elder woman had said.

"Wh… why would ya' even compare him to that idiot? That's the lowest insult ya' could ever give to a cute dog like him… Besides, unlike that lazy bum, he tries his best to live another day," rebutted the woman in question.

Hinowa just giggled seeing that Tsukuyo was totally in denial, making her blush from pink to red.

"You know what, if I didn't know you any better I would just think that it was the only reason that you took him."

"I… IT'S NOT, OKAY! LET'S JUST LEAVE IT AT THAT!" shouted the Shinigami Dayuu to prove her point. She then went to the door, attempting to go back outside.

"Wait, where are you going Tsukuyo?" halted Hinowa.

"I'm going out to resume my patrollin'."

"But it's your birthday. Why not take the rest of the day off? You've already worked all morning anyway."

"I'm sorry Hinowa, but I still have a job to do and a district to protect."

Letting out a deep sigh, the handicapped woman knew that she can't do anything about it when it comes to her and her job.

"Alright then, but please come home in time for dinner. I'm going to cook us a feast to celebrate you birthday," requested Hinowa.

"Okay, I will."

* * *

Back in the bakeshop at Kabuki-chou, Gintoki was still trying to suck the life out of the sadistic Okita when suddenly…

"Uhm… excuse me sir," interrupted the sales clerk. "Uhm… your cake is ready."

"What the… I didn't order a cake yet," said by the silver-permed man as he slowly loosened his grip on the sadist's neck. While Gintoki went up to claim his order, Sougo immediately sucked in as much air as he could to replenish the lost oxygen from his body.

Upon arriving at the front desk, Gintoki became paralyzed. His jaw dropped in disgust and his whole upper body weakened as if all of its strength was sucked out based on what he saw. It was a strawberry short cake with a pink icing and on its center, it read, "To: Tsukki From: Danna" written in red icing enclosed in a heart that was made out of white icing.

Even though he was a huge fan of strawberries and sweets, the fact that it was addressed to a woman who always throws kunais at his head and basically kills him given the chance makes it unappetizing to his eye.

While he was still shocked, the young Shinsengumi officer went up to the front desk to pick up his order.

"I'll have the usual please…"

"Here you go, Okita-sama. Just like always. Two banana muffins, two cupcakes topped with mayonnaise and two cheesecakes," said the clerk, giving the box to him.

When Sougo received the box, he immediately opened it to check if there is something missing. And just as he thought, there was something missing.

"Miss, I think you forgot something."

It took a couple of seconds for the store clerk to process what was missing in the box that she gave. But then she remembered what it was. "Oh, I'm so sorry for that, Okita-sama. Here's the bottle of hot sauce."

"Thanks. Oi, Danna. I'm off. Just say hi to…"

Sougo stopped in the middle of his farewell to Gintoki because of something that had caught his attention. On the front desk was the cake that was allegedly intended for Gintoki. Once again, his sadistic side took over as a plan hatched inside his head on how he can torture him even more.

He grabbed his phone from his pocket and took a photo of the cake. The clicking sound of the camera (or phone to be specific) snapped Gintoki out of his trance and he realized that the sadistic kid had taken a picture of that abomination.

When he looked at Sougo, he can see that he has that irritating, scary and sadistic look accompanied with those huge reddish, brown eyes which can only mean two things: One is that he can spread the picture of the cake to everyone he knows and it might even spread to Yoshiwara to pleasure himself from his humiliation. Second is that he can use it as means of blackmail to get something from the Yoshiwara's Danna.

Panicking, Gintoki immediately rushed in to get his phone but Sougo saw it coming and dodged his attack. But the silver-permed samurai was persistent not to give himself any dirt that can be used against him so he went in for another attack. But it was pointless. Before he knew it, the sadistic teenager was already high up in the air and landed feet first on his head, knocking down the Yorozuya Danna, face first in the process.

"Whew, that was fun. We should do this thing more often. See you around Danna and remember, I have dirt on you." Satisfied with himself, the Shinsengumi 1st Division Captain left the shop and went back to their headquarters.

Meanwhile, Gintoki, who was already having a bad day because of what happened earlier, stood back up on his feet, only

to be greeted by the store clerk. "Uhm… here's your cake now _Danna-sama._"

The clerk only made his mood worse. "HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO REPEAT MYSELF, I HAVEN'T ORDERED A CAKE YET AND WHY IS THIS ADDRESSED TO TSUKKI!?"

"Well, I assumed that it was for her since you were talking about her with Okita-sama a while ago and he also kept calling you 'Danna' so I guess tha…"

"DON'T YOU KNOW THAT WRONG ASSUMPTIONS CAN HAVE FATAL CONSEQUENCES? Sure, it's cool to be called Danna. It has a good ring in it. But for the love of God, JUST REMOVE THOSE LETTERINGS AND THAT DESIGN IF YOU EVER WANT ME TO BUY THAT CAKE!"

"But I think that…"

"IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT YOU THINK!"

_Thud!_

Upon hearing that sound, Gintoki noticed that there were pink splatters that covered his face, around the clerk's and almost everywhere in the front desk. He then saw his hand clenched into a fist, plunged deep within the center of the cake, resting on the plate that was holding it.

"Uh… uhm… sumi… sumimasen…" Those were the only words that he could blurt out to the clerk because he was too nervous and scared at her now-sarcastically smiling face with a vein throbbing above her head in anger.

"Uhm… you're supposed to pay for that now, sir…"

Comprehending the clerk's command, Gintoki reached inside his yukata to grab his wallet. He checked inside and found a total of a thousand and three hundred yen. But before he gets the money inside, he asked first what the price of the cake is just to be sure. But when the clerk told him about the price, it seemed like his whole world had stopped. He was brought back to reality when the clerk grabbed his attention.

"Sir, the total price of that cake is one thousand eight hundred yen. Is there a problem?"

The silver-permed samurai was shaking in his boots. Sweat was dripping down his forehead heavily and his body started to get numb, realizing that he has not enough money to pay for it. Running out of options, he decided to somehow lower the price to his affordable range.

"Uhm… just one quick question… What's with the price hike? Wasn't the price of these things supposed to be one thousand two hundred?"

The clerk nodded, confirming his hoax. "Yes, there was but that was months ago during our shop sale for the holidays. The standard prices of our cakes are one thousand five hundred but because your cake was decorated, it increased to one thousand eight hundred. Do I make myself clear, Danna-sama?"

Gintoki's trump card has been shredded into tiny bits in front of him (figuratively). Now he has no idea how to pay for the cake that he didn't even order. Noticing that her customer was stunned when she explained the price, she began cracking her fists, showing him what will happen if he doesn't pay. With nowhere to run, Gintoki decided to come clean, with an added dramatic story to somehow get some sympathetic discount.

"Uhm… Excuse me… I'm sorry but... I can't pay you that amount be… because…" Gintoki then started sobbing, acting as if something really tragic just happened to him.

"My mother… she's currently on the hospital and is diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer… and the doctor said that anytime she may die… and this was her last request for me… But all our money has been spent on her medications and medical services." Right on cue, his tears were forced to fall. "So please, be a good soul and fulfill a dying woman her final wish (sob)."

To his luck, the clerk went outside the booth and comforted him. Somehow, she bought Gintoki's skit and hugged him.

"Oh you poor thing… Don't worry; I'll let you have this for free…"

Gintoki raised his head up, delighted on what he heard. But when he looked upward, his face met a fist that sent him crashing down near the exit. The clerk slowly approached the battered body of the fallen troublemaker. When she was close enough, the clerk grabbed him by the collar and lifted his upper body.

"You know," said the clerk with a sarcastic smile in her face, "You didn't have to lie to say that you can't pay for something that you have broken."

"R-Really..?"

"Yes, because either you lie or not, I will still beat you up," replied the clerk.

"W-Wait, can't we talk this over?"

"Nope."

And with that, the clerk prepared to beat up the broke samurai while he closed his eyes and prepared for the worst. Fortunately for him, before she could throw a single punch, two people entered the store, making the clerk to quickly return back to her post.

"_Konnichiwa_," greeted the clerk.

"_Konnichiwa,_" greeted back a small adolescent girl who has her pink hair done in two buns and a pair of glasses wearing a young boy.

'OI THERE YOU GO AGAIN! HOW MANY TIMES SHOULD I REPEAT MYSELF, IT'S THE OTHER WAY AROUND!'

Realizing who the two were, Gintoki slowly approached them. "Patt... Pattsuan, please lend me some cash. I'm a bit… short."

The clerk noticed that the troublemaker knew the two newcomers and told them what situation he was in. But before she could tell them that interesting detail about the cake, Gintoki quickly came over and covered her mouth.

"Look, I'll pay you an extra two hundred yen if you will shut up and repair that cake exactly the way I wanted it to look like. Now do we have a deal?"

The clerk nodded her head and proceeded to repair the cake. The other two members of the Yorozuya were somehow confused on the situation that their leader was in. They knew the fact that he was short on money for the cake but what was all about the shutting-the-clerk-up thing?

"Uhm… Pattsuan, could you lend me a thousand yen? I left my cash back at the house. I promise to pay you back when we get paid," requested Gintoki.

"Tsk, it's so typical of you, always rushing in on stuff without even thinking… Fine, here," said Shinpachi as he walked towards Gintoki and gave him the money that he needed. After that, the clerk called Gintoki to come to the front desk.

"Here's your cake, Danna-sama. It's just like the way you've wanted me to do so."

The cake this time had a pink icing that had some special patterns on it and white icing on the edges that served as the borders.

Finally it was good enough. It didn't contain any more idiotic messages or insignificant shapes. Satisfied with the final product, the silver-permed samurai handed over the money plus the bribe. He returned back to his two friends, left the place and proceeded to their destination—the red light district. On their way out, the clerk greeted them goodbye and told them to come again anytime. Well, because of what happened earlier, Gintoki was sure of himself that he won't be going back in there anytime soon.

While they were walking, Kagura kept wondering what was up with Gintoki a while ago. Curious to find out what it was, she decided to ask him about it.

"Oi Gin-chan, why were you shutting up that clerk a while ago –aru? Did something happen before we came there?"

"Oh yeah, that's right. I almost forgot about that. Why did you do that? Don't tell me that you had a thing with the clerk and tried to seduce her?" added Megane. **(Shinpachi's giving me the daggering stare. Sorry Shin-bou, that's what you really are.)**

"Now where did that come from, Pattsuan? There's no way that I'm seducing that freakazoid. I mean, she's as scary and vicious as Otae-san but with cups. Anyway, the reason I shut her pie hole immediately is because I don't want you guys to know that I ran into those pathetic excuses for a police force in the shop and well got into a little trouble with them," lied their leader who was somehow confident that the two would buy his story and luckily for him, they did.

"Why would you not tell something as simple as that –aru? It's like normal when we bump into them and just say hi, right?"

"Well, you know how much an eyesore I am to Hijikata, right? So after our little 'rough housing', that stupid mayo freak gave me a ticket and that's why I got short on cash for the cake. Oh by the way, Kagura, Souichiro-kun said hi."

Hearing the name of the sadist and the word hi on the same sentence just made the young Yato angry. She knew that he was just teasing her about winning their last fight on the park… again. "ARGH! WHEN I SEE THAT DAMN SADIST AGAIN, I SWEAR I'M GONNA KILL HIM AND EAT HIS HEART OUT!"

Shinpachi sighed. "Kagura chan really hates Okita-san's guts, doesn't she?"

"Who can blame her? I'm pretty sure that there are a lot of people in Edo who wants the head of that sadist on a silver platter. Anyway, let's just hurry up to Hinowa's place and get this thing over with so I can pay my debts and probably eat some chocolate parfait if I still have the cash."

"HAI!" replied the two youngsters.

* * *

After hours of walking, it was already past noon when the gang finally made it to the red light district of Yoshiwara. Upon arriving at Hino-ya, Shinpachi knocked on the door. "Hinowa-san, we're here."

"I'll be right there," replied Hinowa.

Seconds later, the fusuma of the shop opened. The Yorozuya were greeted by Hinowa and Seita. "It's nice to see you all again," greeted the handicapped woman.

"Gin-san, minna, I'm so glad that you're here," greeted the energetic boy.

"It's good to see you guys too. Where's Tsukuyo-san by the way?"

"You know her, she's out on the streets, patrolling like always," explained Hinowa. Suddenly, Kagura noticed their new pet walking towards the front, curious on what the commotion was.

"Wow, what a cute puppy. Is that yours, Seita?"

"Yup, Tsukuyo-nee just brought him today. His name is Shiro."

"Nice name. It fits him very well. Can I hold him, Seita? Please?"

"Of course, be my guest."

With Seita's approval, Kagura hoisted the puppy up in the air for the three of them to see him. All of them loved the dog because of his cuteness except for Gintoki who isn't actually a fan of pets.

"Pfft, what's so special about that dog? He just looks like Sadaharu—only in puppy form," commented the silver-permed samurai while picking his nose with his pinky.

"Aw come on Gin-san, don't be like that. Besides, if you look at him a little closer, he looks just like you," replied Shinpachi.

"He's right, Gin-chan. He even has your wavy hair," added Kagura.

"Wha… What!? You dare compare my looks to a mere mutt? I'm insulted!" Gintoki's reaction only made everyone laugh, seeing how much he was denying the truth.

"Actually," said Hinowa to break the laughter, "Gin-san was the first thing that popped into my mind when I saw Shiro for the first time."

"And Tsukuyo-nee told us that she found him drinking strawberry milk that was spilled on the street." added Seita, which only increased Gintoki's irritation.

In defense, the Yorozuya Danna insisted that it's just a mere coincidence and any stray animal would drink anything that was spilled on the street. He even told them that Hasegawa does the same whenever he encounters anything edible or drinkable that's left on the ground. But what the dog did next surprised everyone, especially Gintoki.

Out of nowhere, Shiro sneezed, brushed his nose with his paw and rubbed it on the samurai's boot.

"Gyah! Oh man, that's disgusting. Bad dog! Bad dog!" reprimanded Gintoki as he wiped away whatever substance Shiro rubbed in his boots.

"Oi Gin-san, he even has your bad habit of picking your nose and rubbing it off to somewhere. He really is like you."

"Shut it, Megane! And just for that, you're not getting your share with the reward we're getting."

"No way, that's not fair! Plus, you still owe me some money!"

Listening to the boys quarrelling about the reward, Kagura remembered that Hinowa told them specifically to bring a cake. She then gave the box to her, leaving the two to have their talk.

"Here's the cake that you ordered."

"Oh thank you, Kagura-chan. It looks beautiful too. I hope that I didn't cause you any trouble for this."

The Yato girl didn't bother to tell her about the trouble Gintoki went through just to get the cake because she thought that it was his fault anyway and was irrelevant.

"Nah, it's nothing -aru. But I keep wondering, what is it for?"

"It's for Tsukuyo… You see, today… is her birthday."

Hinowa's announcement left the Yorozuya stunned. They weren't aware that today was her birthday. Who can blame them? Almost everything about her is still a mystery and only Hinowa knows about it. Even Seita didn't know it and he's practically living together with her. Everybody suddenly felt guilty about their ignorance about it and the fact that they didn't even bother to know. After all, they are her closest friends apart from the Hyakka. Since everyone seemed to be feeling down, Hinowa decided to break the ice.

"Minna, don't feel so bad. Yorozuya-san, the main reason I told you to come here is to help me and Seita-kun throw Tsukuyo-chan a surprise party."

"Yey! A party! We're going to have a party!" yelled the two kids while jumping up and down.

"I guess that's the only thing we can do to redeem ourselves right, Gin-san?" asked Shinpachi to a nose-picking Gintoki.

"Whatever, I just want to get paid, that's all."

"Alright then, minna listen up," ordered the handicapped woman.

According to her plan, Seita and Kagura will help her set up the house by putting streamers, banners and other party decorations. They will also help in preparing the food and hopefully Kagura won't eat anything before Tsukuyo comes home from work. Gintoki and Shinpachi on the other hand will buy drinks _(non-alcoholic on Gintoki's watch. God knows what will happen to him if she even gets a sip of alcohol),_ plastic cups, some sweet buns _(as requested by Seita)_, sukonbu _(because Kagura got jealous of Seita making a request)_ and candles.

* * *

While Hinowa, Seita and Kagura started their work inside the house, the two boys began to do their so-called scavenger hunt list and walked the streets of the red-light district.

"Oi Gin-san, what should we get first?"

"Let's get those sweet buns first. My body is already craving for something sweet."

"But Hinowa-san just gave us enough money for the exact number of the items we need."

"Relax, Pattsuan. I still have some money left in me. Besides, I heard that sweet buns here in Yoshiwara are as big as… uhm well as big as this." Gintoki spread his hands to show the cherry boy how big the size of the sweet bun he was talking about when suddenly his hand did catch something big… and squishy. When he looked at Shinpachi, his face couldn't even tell how afraid he was at that moment.

Just to make sure, Gintoki gave 'it' another squeeze. Once he was sure about it, he started to sweat heavily, nervous on what is about to happen next. Slowly and fearfully, he turned his head towards the direction of his arm to find a shaking Shinigami Dayuu glowing red in anger and embarrassment.

"S… sw… sweet bun?"

Pushed beyond her boiling point, Tsukuyo turned the perverted samurai to his back and grabbed a hold of his waist.

"WHAT THE HELL DO YA' THINK YER' DOIN'!?" shouted the enraged kunochi as she gave him a German suplex straight to the ground.

* * *

**Class 3-Z Ginpachi-sensei Segment:**

Ginpachi: Okay, so that was Chapter 1 of what seems to be like a long and boring fanfic. Do any of you have any questions?

Ginpachi: Yes, Toushi?

Toushi: Why weren't Kondou-san and I a part of this chapter, huh?

Ginpachi: Do I look like the guy that can call the shots here?

Toushi: No, but you're the…

Ginpachi: Then shut it! (Toushi goes back to his seat.) Any other questions that make sense? Yes, Takasugi?

Takasugi: Can I destroy you?

Ginpachi: (silence) Next question please… Yes, Otae?

Otae: Uhm, who's the new kid, sensei? (points over to Kamui)

Ginpachi: What the? I thought you were in that other school?

Kamui: Well, it got so boring back there. All your classmates and the school staff look exactly the same except for one student and a teacher. Plus this is a fanfiction and just like what you've said, you're not the guy who calls the shots around here, are you?

Ginpachi: Grrr… Whatever… Moving on to our last question for this period. Yes, Sougo?

Sougo: Could you please check your phone Sensei?

Ginpachi: Why did you send me a naked picture of you with you sleep mask on? You should send that stuff to someone like Kagura, you know.

Kagura: Eww, that's disgusting. But if ever you send me that, I'll make sure that everybody in this school would see that -aru.

Sougo: Whatever. I'll deal with you later, China. In the meantime, can everyone please check your phones?

Everybody checked their phone to find a picture of the cake that Ginpachi ordered on the bakeshop on its original state. Some letters were added outside the cake that reads: "Tsukki, if you want some of this then you can kiss it out of my mouth. XOXO Ginpachi." Everybody was speechless on what they've just seen while Sougo just had a gruesome smirk in his face.

A knock was suddenly heard on the door.

?: Uhm, is Ginpachi-senpai available?

Kamui: Yes, he is.

Takasugi: You better get that, Sensei.

Ginpachi: No way, my life might be put into danger if I answer that door.

Sougo: Now, now, it's rude to ignore somebody who's at the door. Isn't that what you've told us Sensei?

Ginpachi: Fine! But mark my words, I'll get you three for this.

Ginpachi approached the door. He took in a huge gulp and opened it. After opening it, a barrage of kunai came flying in, all of them hitting their target which was none other than Ginpachi. At the end of the barrage, Ginpachi fell unconscious on the floor with blood oozing out of his body, creating a puddle.

Takasugi: I guess I have to settle with someone else destroying you. After all, it's still entertaining.

Kamui: You two seem to be nice. Wanna hang out later?

Sougo: Eh, sounds good to me.

Takasugi: Whatever.

Ginpachi: Class… Dismissed…

Takasugi: P.S. Remember to review or else, I will destroy you.

* * *

**Now, now, Takasugi-kun, don't be that mean. Anyway, thanks for reading and please leave your reviews.. I'll update soon!**


	2. Birthdays Are Not Complete WO Presents

**A/N: **First of all thanks for all the reviews that I've gotten for the first chapter. I really appreciate them all.

**Kurasuchi: **I guess we think alike, haha. Joke. Anyway, thanks for the heads up with the typo. However, I'm not that familiar with beta readings 'coz I'm just new here. Thanks for the advice though.

**Okita Kagura: **I'll probably add the OkiKagu part on chapter 3 the earliest (I think) 'coz the whole layout of the story changes in my head whenever I start writing.

**Redguy21 and Hossein-movie: **Thanks for the support guys.

* * *

**Quick overview of the chapter: A lot of GinTsu moments.**

* * *

**Chapter 2: Birthdays Are Not Complete Without Presents**

"I'm sorry for ma' actions a while ago. I just acted out of instinct… I think," said Tsukuyo as she puffed out a smoke from her kiseru.

"No need to apologize, Tsukuyo-san. It's us who should apologize for that inappropriate act, right Gin-san?" asked Shinpachi to Gintoki who was still knocked out from the German suplex that he received a while ago.

"By the way, Ha…" Before the teenage boy could continue on talking, he remembered Hinowa telling them that if they meet Tsukuyo on their way, they should not tell her about her birthday. After all, she wanted to surprise her when she gets home. Realizing that he already spoke out the syllable '_Ha'_, Shinpachi thought of a way on how he could somehow fix it.

"Ha… How's your patrolling going on?"

"Well, it's a bit hard lately."

"Really? Why is that?"

"Ya see we're currently investigatin' 'bout a weapons smugglin' syndicate that has been roamin' 'round Yoshiwara. We still can't manage to get any leads to it up to now. Anyway, what are the two of ya' doin' here?" asked the Shinigami Dayuu.

Shinpachi stopped on his tracks upon hearing that question. He forgot to plan an alibi if they ever meet Tsukuyo along the way. He can't tell her that they were going to buy some stuff requested by Hinowa or the fact that she requested for their assistance because it would be too obvious. Running out of ideas, the Megane started to get nervous until Gintoki stood back up.

"We're here to elevate Pattsuan's status from a boring cherry boy into an awesome _bang_-boy. Isn't that right Pa—"

Before the permed samurai could finish his sentence, a kunai suddenly found its mark on his forehead, knocking him down once more in the process because of the amount of blood that was shooting out from it.

"Actually, we were really here to pick up some sweet buns because Gin-san needed something sweet to eat. He insisted on coming here because he said that the sweet buns here have a bigger size than the usual," explained Shinpachi, bending the truth a little.

"Oh, I see," said the Hyakka Kashira in a disappointed tone. For some reason she was hoping for them, especially Gintoki, to have remembered her birthday. But who was she to presume? She didn't even remember it herself. She then shook the thought of it and went back to reality. "The sweet buns here do have a bigger size than the ones from the surface 'specially if ya' buy 'em from the uptown part of the district."

"Is that so? Thanks for the heads up, Tsukuyo-san."

"It's no problem at all. Anyway, I'm still on duty and I have to go back to work. 'Twas really nice seein' you guys again. Have a safe trip back to the surface."

"It was nice to see you too, Tsukuyo-san. Oi, Gin-san. Say goodbye, we're going now," instructed the teenage boy. Gintoki, in response, simply raised his hand gingerly to her, unable to say goodbye because of the massive blood loss that he had sustained. With that, Shinpachi grabbed his samurai boss by the boot and dragged him away.

* * *

Meanwhile in the Shinsengumi Headquarters, the Vice-Commander of the said police force, Toshirou Hijikata was taking a dump at the restroom. Apparently, there was something that he ate that made his stomach uncomfortable and has been in there doing his 'work' for almost an hour since he went in. He was perspiring hardly and his body is starting to tire out because of too much pushing. **(If you know what I mean.)**

"What the hell is wrong with me? This is the first time that I ever experienced this kind of diarrhea. What the hell did I eat today?"

Hijikata backtracked through all the food that he had consumed for that day and tried to figure out what made him sick. For breakfast he had tamagoyaki with mayonnaise and a cup of espresso topped off with mayonnaise. For lunch, he had their usual Shinsengumi sausages with mayonnaise and for their snack, he had two cupcakes with mayonnaise that was brought in by Sougo.

"Okay, I'm pretty sure mayonnaise is out of the list," concluded the Fukuchou which is ironic because consuming too much mayonnaise can cause an unstable stomach because of the acid levels it has, plus it contains too much calories. But we all know that this guy's life is mayonnaise. Even if you look inside his body, his heart is pumping out mayonnaise instead of blood. So it really is impossible that it was caused by it.

Suddenly, he heard the door of the restroom open. He was now starting to get nervous as he doesn't want anyone to find out what he is currently going through. Fortunately for him, the person headed into another toilet booth, probably to take a dump as well which eased up Hijikata a bit.

"How are you holding up in there, Hijikata-san?" asked a voice that came from above the bathroom stall.

Surprised by the voice, the mayo freak looked upward to find the last person that he wanted to see. It was none other than Sougo Okita, the person who makes his everyday life a living hell just to please himself.

"WHAT THE HELL?! GET OUT OF HERE WILL YA!" yelled Hijikata, irritated by his presence.

His reaction however only insisted the sadistic boy to torture him even more. "What's the matter huh? Did you give yourself a little tummy ache?"

"What does it look like, Captain Obvious?"

"It's probably those cupcakes that you ate a while ago. I told you a million times before that someday that disgusting concoction that you are addicted to will one day kick you in the butt. Based on your current situation, looks like it did kick it and your ass is throwing up as a reaction," explained Sougo.

"HELL NO! AND WHO ARE YOU TO CALL THE GREATEST CONDIMENT IN THE WORLD TO BE DISGUSTING HUH?!"

"Yeah, you're right. Maybe it's not the mayo because that's basically your blood. Maybe it's this thing." Okita then showed him a little green bottle.

Hijikata was curious on what was inside that strange bottle. Upon further inspection, he noticed that the label of it reads 'XXX'. He knows what it means when something is labeled XXX— it's obviously nasty. Without Sougo telling him what was inside of it, he started to feel cold sweat dripping from his face.

"So… Sougo, I think I can already presume that there's something nasty inside that thing isn't there..?"

Seeing that he had already figured it out, the 1st Division Captain began to have that sadistic look on his face and that distinctive fretful grin. "If you must know Hijikata-san, it's… laxative and I put a whole bottle inside each cupcake using a syringe."

It was worse than what he had expected it to be. Laxative can leave him in that throne for the next hour or worse, for the next twenty-four hours. Again, Sougo picked up his phone to capture yet another embarrassing photo—especially from Hijikata—to add to his album of sadism victims.

"Okay, looks like my job here is done. Well, see you later Hijikata-san," greeted the younger Shinsengumi officer. "I hope that you poop all of your internal organs out so that you can finally die." Satisfied with his daily dose of Hijikata _abuse_ment, Sougo left the restroom.

"BAKA, IT DOESN'T WORK THAT WAY!" shouted the trapped officer who was still experiencing diarrhea.

Minutes later, Hijikata's stomach had finally felt stable. Relieved that his horrible experience was finally over, he reached for the toilet paper to clean up. But when he reached for it, it was empty, leaving only the tube with something written around it. It says:

* * *

_Hijikata-san, if ever you read this note that means that you stomach is finally at ease. Well done, well done indeed. Listen, I forgot to mention this to you a while ago but I took out the toilet paper that was in the stall that you are currently using. Now, you may probably ask yourself, how did I manage to know that you will use this specific stall? That's simple. This is a fanfiction, anything can happen. Isn't that right Author-aniki? Anyway, I wish you the best of luck._

_P.S. I hope you rot in there for eternity._

* * *

After reading the note, Hijikata felt hopeless. There was no way out.

"DAMN YOU, SOUGO!"

Minutes later, another person entered the restroom. This time he was calling for him. "Fukuchou… Fukuchou… Are you inside here? Kyokuchou **(this is Kondo for those who don't know his position)** has been calling for you," said the guy who just entered the restroom, whose voice was very familiar to Hijikata.

"Yamazaki, is that you?"

"Hai," confirmed the anpan freak. For the first time, Hijikata was delighted that his subordinate was around. Finally, he can get out of there.

"Yamazaki, can you get me a roll of tissue paper from the other stalls? Mine ran out—that's why I'm stuck here," instructed the Fukuchou.

Obeying his officer's command, Yamazaki searched the stalls for tissue paper but unfortunately, all of the other stalls were empty.

"Fukuchou, all of the other stalls don't have tissue paper in them as well."

Yamazaki's announcement made Hijikata drop his jaw in disbelief. How can all the stalls have no toilet paper at the same time? Suddenly his phone vibrated. It was a message from Sougo. It said:

* * *

_Hijikata-san, I forgot to add this to my previous message before because I've already consumed all of the spaces in it. Sorry about that. It's not because that this is fan fiction that I've figured out what stall you will be in. I just removed all the toilet paper in the restroom to assure that you cannot use any toilet paper to wipe your ass clean._

_P.S. Kondo-san is now considering on making me the Fukuchou since you're absent today in the assembly. _

* * *

Angered, Hijikata smashed his phone on the ground and stomped on it repeatedly. "I'LL GET YOU FOR THIS, YOU DAMN SADIST! I'LL KILL YOU I SWEAR TO GOD I'LL KILL YOU!"

Terrified by his superior's scream, Yamazaki decided to slowly move away from the restroom. Once he was on the door, he munched on an anpan to calm himself and pretended that he didn't hear or see Hijikata that time. He'll just say to Kondo that Hijikata was nowhere to be seen.

* * *

Back in Yoshiwara, the Yorozuya men had finally finished buying everything that was on their shopping list and are now headed back to Hino-ya. But Gintoki had some other plans on his mind and told Shinpachi to go ahead and bring back everything they bought while he will go and play at the pachinko parlor for a while. Of course, Shinpachi was against that proposal because he will have to carry everything. But before he could complain, the silver-permed samurai was already nowhere to be seen.

He sighed. "Every freaking time…" muttered out the teenage boy.

* * *

It was already sunset when Shinpachi arrived back at Hino-ya. When he arrived, he was immediately asked by everyone where Gintoki was. He told them that he wanted to play pachinko for a while and that he would catch up. Kagura was of course annoyed at what their leader did. I mean seriously, what kind of a person takes off during such a hectic time?

"That selfish bastard –aru. What the hell was he thinking, leaving us like this? And then when he loses all of his money again, he will complain all night at the house about being broke. HE'S SO DESPICABLE –ARU!"

"Don't worry about it Kagura-chan, Shinpachi-kun. Just let him be," said Hinowa to calm down the two teenagers which was weird because most people would be pissed with what Gintoki did and eventually beat him up if ever they found out where it was.

"What do you mean just let him be, Hinowa-san? Besides, what if he misses Tsukuyo-san's party because of that? Isn't that why we're here?" asked the megane. **(THERE YOU GO AGAIN!)**

"I just think that he won't do that. Just trust me on this, okay?"

Seeing that there's no way to change Hinowa's opinion about the matter, the two teenagers continued on finishing everything that was left. Shinpachi took over in the kitchen duties, Kagura and Seita set up the kotatsu in the dining area, Hinowa prepared the utensils and well… Shiro just lazed off at the zabuton in the living room.

* * *

Gintoki had been walking the streets of the red light district for a couple of hours since he left Shinpachi. He was requested by Hinowa to buy a gift for Tsukuyo because she wanted Tsukuyo to have something that came from him for her birthday… and well you know… she also wanted them both to get closer to each other… But of course she didn't tell him that.. Unfortunately for our samurai friend, he can't manage to find a gift that he thinks she would like.

"Oh man, this is such a troublesome request. I mean it's not like we've spent a lot of screen time together to know each other that well," he grumbled, sighing to himself as he scratched his wavy silver hair. "How am I gonna solve this damn mess?"

As he continued to stroll on the streets, he spotted a familiar person who seemed to be snooping in the corner of what looked like a hostess club. Suddenly, a strange large, white creature appeared next to him. By then, Gintoki already knew who the person was. It was his old friend, Katsura Kotarou. Curious on what he was doing in a place like this, he decided to approach

him.

"Oi oi, what the hell are you doing here, Zura?" asked Gintoki to his old friend.

Upon seeing Gintoki, the infamous Joui leader quickly dragged the permed samurai by his arm behind the club.

"OI ZURA, WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?"

"Zura janai, Katsura da!" answered the man-in-question first, since it has always been a habit for him to do that. "I'm here to investigate something, Gintoki."

"And what would you be investigating in a place like this, huh? Probably you're trying to observe the action that's going down on that club so that you could practice it for yourself on Ikumatsu-chan, don't you?" teased Gintoki.

Elizabeth then followed it up by raising a white sign board that read, _'You can say that again._' which made the self-proclaimed Fruits Punch Samurai G really pissed.

"URUSAI! I'm not that kind of a person to do those kinds of things, ESPECIALLY TO IKUMATSU-DONO!" rebutted Katsura. "And you," he said, pointing his attention to Elizabeth. "How could you think that I was planning that kind of stuff to her, huh? You know how I act in front of her. I always brought you whenever we eat at Hokuto Shinken!"

"But wasn't there an instance that you tried to steal her bra and when you were caught by her, you pretended to be Santa Claus?" asked Elizabeth by raising another sign board.

"Th… That's not what it looked like…" replied Katsura as his face turned red in embarrassment. This did not pass the eye of Gintoki as a mischievous grin appeared in his face.

"Oi Zura, don't tell me that you have become that desperate with her that you've become a stalker like that Gorilla Commander of the Shinsengumi?"

"ZURA JANAI, KATSURA DA! And no, I'm not a stalker." After everything cooled down for the meantime, Katsura told Gintoki the reason why he was at Yoshiwara.

During the past weeks there have been reports that several members of his Jouishishi faction had been in possession of small firearms which he thought were good at first. But as time went by, those several members grew in number. What's worse is that they have been absent during training days and during major meetings. Eventually, they were nowhere to be found anywhere around Akiba Neo.** (The underground electronics district that had served as the hideout of the whole Jouishishi.)** This epidemic, according to him, has now become a major detriment to the faction. Several days passed and he was given news that the 'ghost members' of the Joui have started to appear at Yoshiwara.

"So, you guys are affected by that group too, huh?" asked Gintoki.

Katsura was surprised that his old friend knew something that he did not. "What? There's a group involved with this? Where did you get this, Gintoki?"

"Let's just say I have connections around here and this area's safety is also being affected by that group as well. Let's leave it at that," explained his former Joui comrade.

His explanation made Katsura think of the reason behind all of this. But suddenly, another question popped up in his head.

"Uhm… What exactly are you doing here, Gintoki?"

"Me? I'm here because of a request," replied the man-in-question.

"Oh really, a request in the so-called 'Red Light District', is it? Oh my, I didn't think that the day would come that the feared Shiroyasha would succumb to becoming a mere prostitute."

Gintoki was insulted with what the Joui leader had said. "BAKA! I'm not the person who would do such a thing. The only woman that I would allow to do that is Ketsuno Ana only. Don't compare me to a weak ass person like you who can be easily charmed by married women."

"Married women janai, widows da! There' a big difference bet—"

"THEY'RE STILL BOTH MARRIED!" shouted Gintoki to prove his point, stopping the other man on his tracks.

No words were heard after that shout. It seemed that the two had enough of bickering for the day—that was until the long haired samurai decided to break the ice.

"So, how many clients are you servicing tonight?" asked Katsura which finally made Gintoki snap. Enraged, he grabbed his head and rammed it continuously against the wall. With one final big ram that made a huge crack on the wall, Gintoki was finally satisfied with what he had done, leaving Zura's head a bloody mess. He was about to leave when…

"Ho… hold on for a minute… Th… there's something I must know…" asked the beaten samurai who was trying to get back on his feet.

"What is it this time?" asked Gintoki, thinking that it was something serious.

"Do you receive some suck suck action while you do your clie—Urgh!" Zura suddenly fainted, unable to finish his question when Gintoki was sparking a rock **(Just like Yamazaki with anpan)** right into his face, who couldn't endure anymore stress coming from him.

Responding to the event, Elizabeth raised another sign that read, 'Strike three, you're knocked OUT!'

"Tch, I'm outta here." Finished with his business with Zura, Gintoki left him and his pet Renhou behind and proceeded to finish his other problem.

* * *

Gintoki continued to walk the streets of Yoshiwara, still in search for a present that he can give to Tsukuyo. Unfortunately, after hours of searching, there's still nothing on what he saw that he thinks she can have an interest on. As the permed samurai walked on, he noticed that the streets were getting busier. He noticed that the night was closing in on the said district—and that marks the beginning of life in Yoshiwara. Courtesans started charming potential customers, stands prepared to open and people started soaking into the night life.

"Oh man, it's starting to get late. I better hurry to find something or else I'm not gonna get paid," said Gintoki who just realized that he was starting to run out of time.

Suddenly, the Yorozuya Danna saw an accessory stall that was near the place where he beat up Zura. It was different from the other stalls that he saw. Apart from a single light bulb that was hanging above the displayed merchandise, there was nothing else that was keeping the store lighted. Seeing that there was no harm to look, he decided to check the place out.

Upon arriving at the said stand, Giintoki was greeted by the vendor of the store who was a middle-aged woman. "Welcome, young one. Feel free to look."

Observing at the displayed things, he noticed that they looked like they were handmade by the owner and they did have a distinct look within them. However, he still couldn't manage to find the right thing to give to Tsukuyo. But then he had a sudden realization.

_'Why the heck am I giving myself a hard time in picking something for that woman? I should just get her anything from here so I can get my pay already.'_

"Uhm, excuse me, mister," interrupted the woman. "I can't seem to help but notice that you're having trouble in picking an item. You're not buying for yourself, are you? Perhaps someone special?"

"What? No, no, no. You got it all wrong Baa-san. It's uhm… for my sister… Yeah… It's her birthday today…" explained Gintoki. His explanation though just made the woman laugh. It seems as if she could see that he was lying and that she knew that he didn't want to get embarrassed in front of her.

"It's okay young one. No need to hide it from me. I've been in that stage before."

"IT'S NOT LIKE THAT, OKAY?" rebutted Gintoki. _'Damn, when did I start getting bad at lying, Oi, author-sama, give me a better line next time! I'm going on a slump right now!'_**(Don't worry Gin, I'll try better next time.)**

"You know what?" said the vendor. "Wait right here, I may have some things below that can probably get you interested."

For a while, the woman was under her stall looking for the stuff that she was talking about. Finally, she returned back with what looked like an old wooden box. When it was opened, Gintoki saw that it was filled with accessories that were different from the others that were on display. They were not fancy like jewelleries but it didn't matter. He seemed to have taken a liking to them.

"Beautiful, aren't they? I've been saving those babies for special customers and I can tell that you are one of them. These are handmade on the surface by an old artisan. Some say that he did these during the Joui wars to commemorate the sacrifices of the warriors who fought for Edo," explained the woman.

Suddenly, the silver-permed samurai remembered that his old master had something similar that was attached to the handle of his katana. Maybe it was one of those items that the old artisan that was mentioned by the vendor had made during those times.

After scanning through the pile for a bit, he found something that caught his eye. Wanting to see the thing in its full view, Gintoki held it up above his head.

"Ah, it looks like you've found one pretty little thing over there," said the vendor.

"I guess so… How much for this thing, Baa-san?"

"Just 400 yen."

Gintoki handed over the money to the woman. In turn, she placed the item in a small box, wrapped it up with some pretty paper and put a bow on top since he said that it was for her birthday.

"Arigatou, Baa-san. Thanks for everything."

"Dōitashimashite and good luck with your courtage."

"I TOLD YOU BEFORE, IT'S NOTHING LIKE THAT!"

With a last goodbye, Gintoki made haste back to Hino-ya.

* * *

"Oh man, this is bad! Gin-san is late. Tsukuyo-san will be here any minute now!" said Shinpachi who was already panicking with the current situation.

"Yeah, Gin-san has been out for too long. I hope nothing happened to him," worried Seita.

"Hmph, we don't need that baka –aru. We just need Tsukki so we can already start this party. Besides, I'm already starving," complained the young Yato.

"Now, now, Gin-san probably fetched Tsukuyo so that he can lead her to her surprise party," commented Hinowa.

"Argh! I can't take this anymore –aru! I'm so hungry!" yelled the Yato girl as the four of them continued to wait.

* * *

Days have passed since she started her investigation about the weapon smuggling group in the area but still, Tsukuyo cannot get a lead. Even though she had spread all the members of the Hyakka throughout the district, there was still nothing. How could this group manage to avoid being seen by a group of kunoichi?

Seeing that the moon is already shining brightly above the heavens, Tsukuyo realized that it was time to call it a day. She promised Hinowa that she would come home early tonight because she was preparing dinner for her birthday. She would just have to continue it tomorrow. But before she goes back, she decided to stop by a convenience store first and pick up a carton of strawberry milk for Shiro to enjoy.

On her way home, she saw Gintoki in front of her, walking to the same direction as she was. "Gintoki," she called as it caught the samurai's attention. He thought that there was a chance that he would bump onto her on his way back to Hino-ya since it was already late. "What are ya' still doin' here? Where's Shinpachi-kun?" she asked.

Fortunately for him, Gintoki already had a plan to cover for his buying-a-present errand. "I told him to go back to Hino-ya earlier while I play at a pachinko parlor a while ago. On my way to make some cash, I ran into an old friend and we sort of started talking." **(Told ya I'll make a better lie!)**

"But uhm… wasn't that too much time for ya' to talk?" asked Tsukuyo who was left thinking why would Gintoki spend a lot of time just for talking. Knowing him, he isn't the type of person that likes long conversations. Somehow, she cannot help but think that maybe that old friend was a girl who was special to him in a way that he doesn't even realize the time passing by when they're together. Upon realizing it, Tsukuyo started to feel a bit down. **(Oh Tsukki, if only you knew.)**

"Well, this concerns you actually."

"Wha… what do ya mean this concerns me?"

"You see, that old friend of mine is the leader of the Jouishishi faction. Have you heard of them?"

"Yeah, I've heard of 'em. They're the group who's tryin' to oppress the order of the Bakufu and rid Edo of the Amantos, right? What about 'em?"

Gintoki then explained to her about the missing members of the faction and how the weapon smuggling group was involved in it. Tsukuyo was surprised that the group had even made actions in the surface; moreover, they even messed with a Joui faction. What could they be possibly planning?

"Hey, it's getting dark. We should probably get going," proposed Gintoki who was trying to lead her to her surprise. Agreeing with him, the two walked back together.

* * *

As everybody waited for Tsukuyo and Gintoki back at Hino-ya, Shiro suddenly ran towards the door. Once arriving there, the little puppy started scratching it with his paw, trying to somehow get to the other side. Seita noticed the unusual behavior of Shiro and decided to check it out.

"What is it boy?" asked Seita. The dog in turn let out a soft moaning cry as if it was begging to get the attention of his master.

Realizing what Shiro was trying to do, Seita immediately signaled everyone.

"Minna, Tsukuyo-nee is coming! Hide now!"

Upon switching the lights off and preparing their party poppers in hand, everybody hid to their positions.

"The 'ell's up with the lights?" asked Tsukuyo who was wondering why there were no lights open at their house during this time. Once she opened the fusuma of their house, she was immediately greeted by Shiro who immediately leaned his front paws on her leg while wagging his tail.

"Ei boy. You miss me?" asked the Shinigami Dayuu while petting the dog's head in the process.

"Woof!"

"Take a look at you, within less than a day of taking him in and leaving him with Hinowa-san and Seita-kun while you work, it looks like you two have known each other for a long time," commented Gintoki at the sight in front of him as he picked his nose.

"It's called chemistry, Gintoki. And I don't treat him badly like ya' with yer' pet."

"Hey, that's not true! Sadaharu and I have great chemistry. Who told you about that, huh?"

"Kagura. Baka.. who else? Besides, this is a fanfiction. Everythin' happens quickly or slowly accordin' to what the author wants."

"Tch… whatever…"

Still not knowing why the lights were out, Tsukuyo proceeded to go inside and open them. As soon as she opened them, she heard several popping noises and… "SURPRISE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, TSUKUYO!" yelled everyone in the house. It left her speechless for a while before she let out the sweetest smile that she had ever given at the sight that she saw—a banner that read _'Happy Birthday, Tsukuyo'_ on top of the dining area, a wide array of foods and drinks placed at the kotatsu ranging from teriyaki, hotpot, sushi, crabs, tempura. Her family and friends (especially Gintoki) were also there to celebrate it. It was truly one of the happiest moments that she had ever experienced in her life.

"Wow, I… I don't know what to say… Arigatou… minna-san. How did you even know that today is my birthday?"

"Hinowa called us up and asked us to help her prepare this surprise party for you," explained Gintoki.

"So everythin' a while ago with you, Shinpachi and that Joui leader friend of yours were all just a cover up?"

"Wait, Katsura-san was here? Why didn't you tell him to come here?" asked Shinpachi.

"He's busy with Joui activities here. And no, Tsukuyo—Zura's not part of the plan."

Hearing the word 'he' brought some comfort to Tsukuyo who was still wondering if that old friend that Gintoki was talking about was a guy or a girl.

"Okay, okay, we can talk later… let's eat. I'm starving –aru."

"Hold up, Kagura-chan. Let Tsukuyo-san blow the candles first before we eat," instructed Shinpachi.

"That's right. Tsukuyo, go ahead and make a wish," said Hinowa as everyone gathered on the kotatsu.

Once everyone had sat down, they gave Tsukuyo a moment of silence to make her wish.

'_I wish to see the smiles on everyone's faces for as long as I live... especially on him.' _With that, she blew out the candle on the strawberry cake. Suddenly, she noticed something _different_ about the cake.

"Hinowa, this doesn't look like the ones that are made in here. It seems a bit bigger and the frostin' seems thicker."

"That's because it came from Kabuki-chou. It was brought here by the Yorozuya."

"Actually," interrupted Kagura, "Gin-chan was the one who picked that cake –aru."

Tsukuyo was really surprised when she heard that. Her first guess was that Kagura would be the one who will pick her a cake since Tsukuyo spent the most time with her among the Yorozuya. Gintoki was the last person she would've thought to pick a cake for her since both of them always argue whenever they meet. She also thinks that he had grown terrified of her since she always beats him up whenever he accidentally gropes her or whenever she gets drunk, as told by Hinowa after she wakes up the next day. Furthermore, he probably became annoyed by being a magnet for her kunais.

"I can't believe I'm sayin' this but… arigatou, Gintoki."

"Eh… it was nothing, really. Hinowa just told us to bring a cake and I picked my favorite flavor so I can eat a lot of it," explained the samurai.

"Okay, now can we eat?"

"Yes, Kagura-chan. Now we can eat."

"Yatta!"

Once Hinowa gave them the go signal, everybody started to dig with Kagura leading the group in the amount of food on her plate. It was actually miraculous that she'd still left them plenty to eat. Gintoki quickly went for the sweet buns, a slice of cake and soda so that he could replenish the sugar-lytes **(I know, it's not a word)** in his body. Shinpachi, Seita and Hinowa, took turns in choosing from the buffet-like menu while Tsukuyo grabbed first a bowl before getting the carton of strawberry milk from the sleeve of her kimono and pouring it onto the bowl.

This fact did not pass through the eyes of Gintoki who paused for a while on his sugar run. With his strawberry senses **(spider senses parody)** tingling for any signs of his favorite beverage, he quickly saw the birthday girl pouring it on a bowl.

"Oi Tsukuyo, I didn't know that you brought me a carton of strawberry milk. Thanks for being so thoughtful," said the sugar addict, trying to grab the bowl of his favorite beverage. Noticing Gintoki's hand, she quickly threw a kunai through his head, stopping him on his tracks in the process.

"Baka! Who said that I brought this for ya, eh? This happens to be for Shiro since I figured that he likes this a lot when I saw him drinkin' a spilled carton on the streets."

"You mean that the mutt has a higher necessity for that oh-so-heavenly drink than I do?!"

"Of course not, yer' way father from the list. There's Shiro, then there's his poop then the worms that decomposes his poop, then the sand, after that are the fungi and bacteria that lives under the sand and finally there's ya," explained the birthday girl while she placed the bowl on the floor for Shiro to enjoy.

"Tch… fine, I'll let that slide for now since it's your birthday but you can't ever and I mean ever separate me from my one true love that comes in a form of a carton forever. If you ever buy a strawberry-flavored air freshener or even buy a bucket of pink paint that kind of smells like strawberries, I will be there to eat or drink it all. Mark my words!" threatened the sugar and specifically, the strawberry addict as he continued back to his glucose ingestion.

After that oh-so-threatening speech by the permed samurai, everybody laughed. Even Tsukuyo who's known for always being serious couldn't help herself but laugh at the moment. I mean, who wouldn't laugh especially when Gintoki does that sort of thing, right?

"Shinpachi-san, is Gin-san always like that?" asked Seita, curious on his sudden outburst.

"Hai, that's a normal thing for him. Once he sees or even smell sweets, especially strawberries, he will go berserk about it until he can get his hands on them."

"Well, at least now we know what to prepare when you visit Yoshiwara again, isn't that right Tsukuyo?"

Upon hearing Hinowa's question, she presumably choked on her food and quickly drank a glass of water to clear out the debris on her throat.

"The hell that's gonna happen. I won't spend my time makin' sweets if it's just for that jerk."

"Oi oi, you know that I'm just literally a couple of feet away!"

As the night went on and the food on the table started to become empty, everyone started to get sleepy. Hinowa offered the Yorozuya to spend the night with them which they gladly accepted. Kagura will be staying with Tsukuyo, while Shinpachi and Gintoki will be sleeping in the spare room.

* * *

Later that night, while everyone was already asleep, Katsura's words kept Gintoki awake. It made him think on why would a simple weapon-smuggling group whom both Tsukuyo and Zura say that was spreading only small firearms would get more members for? Won't that only jeopardize their plan? With more and more members joining them, their group's activities will only spread further and it could lead to both the Shinsengumi and the Mimawarigumi knowing their location. Is there something about this than meets the eye?

Feeling that he will not be getting sleep anytime soon, Gintoki decided to go outside and lie down at the engawa where it faces the opening of Yoshiwara, revealing the stars and the moon. He noted that the moon was full tonight since the full circle can be seen. While he was there, he remembered the old times while he was still young and couldn't sleep—he would lie down near the tree where he, Zura and Takasugi used to train together with their sensei and stare at the night sky. Sometimes, when he ultimately falls asleep, he would wake up the next day lying in his bed only to find out that his Shouyou-sensei had carried him there. How he wished that his life could go back to that time when life was simpler and of course, when his sensei was still alive.

His daydreaming suddenly came to a halt when he heard footsteps creaking on the wood of the engawa. Since he was lying down, everything was upside down in his vision. He could only see the feet of the person while the upper half was a still a bit off. By just looking at the feet, he kner that it was a girl since the figure was small. She was also wearing a loose pink kimono. Since Kagura was a heavy sleeper and it's impossible that it could be Hinowa, there was only one person that he could've guessed.

"Oi oi, why are you still up, birthday girl? Are you trying to savor it to the last second?" asked Gintoki. He also noted that her blond hair wasn't tied into a bun and her bangs weren't held up by the two mini kunais. Her blond locks just flowed freely up to her shoulders.

"Don't treat me like a typical girl who would do that kind of stuff, Gintoki. I just can't sleep, that's all—and by the looks of it, it seems that the sandman hasn't paid you a visit yet," said Tsukuyo who sat down next him, letting her feet dangle at the edge of the engawa.

"Tch, I can't believe that you still believe in those kinds of stories, Tsukki. You're such a girlie girl," teased the Yorozuya Danna.

"I'm simply usin' a metaphor, baka. And I've told you before—I've abandoned my femininity a long time ago."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever… anyway, why can't you sleep? Let me guess, it's Kagura, isn't it? Does she snore loudly?"

"Nah, she's practically quiet as a baby when she's asleep," commented the Shinigami Dayuu as she puffed out a smoke from her kiseru. "I just can't sleep 'coz of the thoughts of that group that we're trackin' down. It's been a couple of weeks since we started it and just like I've said earlier, we still don't have a lead on who is the head of this group and why they are doing this."

"Well, 'aint that a coincidence. That's what's keeping me up as well."

"You don't have to trouble yourself 'bout this Gintoki. This is a problem of Yoshiwara. This doesn't concern you."

Seeing that this will going to be a long talk, Gintoki sat up with his feet intercrossed with each other. "Look, this group had already affected the Joui faction, which is in the surface. Well actually, their organization is kind of underground but my point is that it's not only Yoshiwara that is being affected here. This also conc…"

"THIS PROBLEM STARTED HERE!" interrupted Tsukuyo with a loud, commanding voice to prove her point. "This wouldn't have escalated to the surface if we've worked harder. It's all ma' fault…" said the Shinigami Tayou, tucking her shin with her knees in the process.

Seeing his companion getting back to her old antics again, Gintoki decided to straighten her up. "Oi oi, what's this all my fault shit again, huh? You're trying to take a burden that isn't meant for you to shoulder alone yet you push aside the people who want to help you. I told you before, you have friends that will lend you an ear or a shoulder and carry a heavy load and walk beside you when you need it." **(Quote from the Red Spider Arc.)**

"But it's because of ma' weakness that yer' life has been put on jeopardy whenever yer' with me—first with Hosen, then with Shishou and finally with Suzuran's promise with Maizou. I… I dunno' what I'll do with ma' self if somethin' bad happens to you because of me again," said Tsukuyo, tucking her face deeper on her knees to hide her expression from him.

Gintoki was caught off guard when he saw Tsukuyo in that state. He didn't know that she actually cares for his safety, let alone worry about him. He crept closer to her, lessening the gap between the two of them and wrapped his arm around her neck to somehow ease her up. It felt warm to her but once she saw Gintoki that close, she quickly tapped his arm away from her.

"Th… the 'ell are ya' doin', huh? Do you want me to throw another kunai through that thick skull of 'yers?" asked Tsukuyo as her face started to blush.

"Trying to get you back to your usual self. You were starting to get out of your character so I did a little fixing and by the way you just reacted, it looks like it worked. Look, it's more important to ask for someone's help rather than tossing away your own sense of self just to die a spectacular death because the best lives are those that are lived while getting a little dirty." **(Continuation of the quote.)**

Seeing what Gintoki was doing, Tsukuyo couldn't help but let out a faint smile on her face. "So ya' actually do that to other people as well when they're not actin' like 'emselves?"

"Sometimes. But most of the time, I just beat 'em up when it starts to get annoying."

"So will 'ya beat me as well if I start to get on ya' nerves?"

"Maybe just slap you just to snap you back to your senses and that's it. But if you started acting like Zura, I'll surely beat you up," teased the former Shiroyasha.

Hearing how obnoxious Gintoki had sounded to her at the moment, Tsukuyo started to giggle softly. Now this was really becoming out of her character and it started to weird out her silver-permed companion. "Oi, could you stop that Tsukuyo? It's really starting to creep me out."

As a reply, Tsukuyo gave him a little shove in his head and said, "Bakayarou" which somehow made Gintoki smile.

"You know what? You're sort of pretty when you smile. You should do that more often. It's natural for girls to do that kind of stuff," said Gintoki, making her face flush once again.

"Wh… what are ya' talkin' 'bout? Didn't I just tell you… I… I…"

"Abandoned your femininity," interrupted Gintoki. "Yeah, I've heard it like a hundred times before. But it doesn't change the fact that you're still a woman with a pretty face." complimented Gintoki that only made Tsukuyo feel more embarrassed.

"O... Oi, Gintoki… ma… maybe you should beat yer' self up… yer' startin' to sound like nothin' like yer' self."

"What? Can't I give you a compliment on your birthday? It's not like every day that I give any girl a complement except for Ketsuno Ana the weather girl, you know. Speaking of giving, I almost forgot to give this to you." Gintoki then grabbed something from under his yukata. It was the present that he bought a while ago.

Tsukuyo was indeed surprised to see him with a gift on hand. Everything about her birthday was already as great as she could've ever wished it to be. But for Gintoki to give her a present… that was too much for her.

"He… hey, ya' didn't have to do that ya' know. I'm already thankful that yer' all here. I didn't even remember that today is ma' birthday until Hinowa told me."

"Come on Tsukki, just take it. Did you know how long I was out on the streets just to look for something that you would like? Besides, consider this as the gift of the Yorozuya for you."

At that moment, it seemed as if time had stopped for the Shinigami Dayuu. She kept asking herself on why he was doing this to her. She didn't hate it—that's for certain, but she's not sure if she wanted to like it. It felt nice and warm inside, yet somehow, her mind kept on telling her to ignore it.

She was then snapped back to reality by Gintoki when he waved his hand up and down in front of her. "Oi, Earth to Tsukuyo, is anybody there?"

"What is it?"

"Uhm…I just like asked you seconds ago if you want me to open it for you. Are you even listening?" asked Gintoki. "I swear, you're getting weirder and weirder by the second. What's up with you today, huh? Is it your period today or someth…"

Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain on his head that stopped him on his tracks. He then saw Tsukuyo looking pissed with her head pouting away from him. Once he saw the kunai that she was holding, he realized that one of them found its way on his head yet again. Fortunately for him, that one appeared to be a toy.

"Fine, open it and get this thin' over with," announced Tsukuyo.

Complying with her request, Gintoki proceeded on opening her gift, placing it in his hand for her to see. It was a bracelet made from hand-carved wood held with a strong elastic thread. The wooden panels were lightly painted with black and white alternately. Each panel had a different pattern drawn in them and inked with the color contrasting the panel they were put into. There were also small pearls lying in between of each of the panels and finally. a small piece of silver flattened into the shape of a circle and designed to look like the moon on the middle of the whole bracelet to was there top it all off.

Tsukuyo was truly mesmerized by it. It was indeed a sight to look at. Its varnished finish added more to its beauty by reflecting the moonlight's shine on it. **(Pardon my grammar.)**

"Gi… Gintoki… this is wonderful… Where did you get this? I… it must have cost ya' a fortune…"

"Nah, I got it for a cheap prize which is really surprising, considering the history of this thing. The old lady said that this thing came from the Joui War era," explained Gintoki. "Now, let's see how this will look on you." Gintoki then extended his hand towards her, asking Tsukuyo to lend him hers. Tsukuyo agreed and placed her hand on the samurai's.

After Gintoki placed the bracelet on her left wrist, Tsukuyo checked it out for herself. Unknown to her, while she was doing that, Gintoki was looking at her as a smile forms in his face. She did look good with that bracelet on her especially when the moonlight illuminates on her, revealing her silky white complexion.

"Do… Does it… look good on me? I mean… Is it okay for me to have something special as this?" asked Tsukuyo.

"What do you mean is it okay for you to have something like that? Of course it is… Why wouldn't it be? Can't you see the moon dangling from it? That's you, Tsukki. Errr… I mean, that's literally what your name means."

Flattered by her friend's comment, Tsukuyo gave him the sweetest smile that she could give as a token of her appreciation.

"Arigatou, Gintoki."

Her smile made Gintoki blush a bit. She was indeed sort of pretty in his eyes when she smiles, but that smile in particular made a lasting impression on his mind. He then closed his eyes for a bit to try and shake it off, thinking that it's probably just his imagination playing ticks on him. "I… it's no problem at all. D… Don't worry about it… "

What came after was an awkward moment of silence between the two until Gintoki let out a yawn. "I'm starting to get a little drowsy. I'm… uh… going back to my room now… You should too coz it's getting pretty late… It was nice talking with you,Tsukuyo. And Happy Birthday again."

"Arigatou gozaimasu… and yeah, I will, but I'm gonna stay here for a bit longer until I start to get sleepy."

"Alright. But don't stay too late or you're gonna be too tired to work tomorrow."

"I won't. Goodnight, Gintoki."

"Goodnight."

Once the two finished their greetings, Gintoki went back to his room, leaving Tsukuyo alone on the engawa. While she was there, she started to soak in everything that just happened a while ago. She can't believe that Gintoki would go through all that just to get her a present. She also couldn't believe how nice he was to her that day, maybe because it's just her birthday that he was like that to her and that he would go back to his old idiotic, irritating self tomorrow. But for some reason, Tsukuyo didn't want him to change. She wanted that version of Gintoki to stay but still, it was because of his unserious way of thinking which she finds as his strong point that weakened her resolve before. So maybe it's for the best for him to stay to his normal idiotic self. Tsukuyo looked again at the bracelet that he gave her. She was really grateful for it. She then placed her arm with the bracelet on her chest and closed her eyes.

Unbeknownst to her, Hinowa was hiding on the far side of the engawa where she can't be noticed because of the shadows and saw everything that happened during that time. "I knew Gin-san would make her feel at ease today. I just didn't expect it to be that good. I'm so happy for you, Tsukuyo. After all, you deserve it."

* * *

Back on the spare room, Gintoki still couldn't sleep. He kept remembering that smile of Tsukuyo from a while ago. It made him feel good and warm inside but again he tried to shake it off. _'Ketsuno Ana's smile is still better. Ketsuno Ana's smile is still better…' _chanted Gintoki over and over inside his head but to no avail. He can still see Tsukuyo in that smile. Realizing that his resistance was futile, he decided to just close his eyes and to try to forget it until he fell asleep.

* * *

**Class 3-Z: Ginpachi-sensei Segment:**

Ginpachi: Okay, that concludes today's lesson. Now, does anyone have any questions? And please ask a real question that's related to the topic please… The last time we did this crap, I had a hundred kunais stuck in my body… Yes, Mitsuba-chan… wait, what? Aren't you supposed to be dead?

Mitsuba: Well, yeah but because a lot of people liked me, I can be in these segments. Plus this is a fanfiction, sensei.

Ginpachi: Anyway, what's your question?

Mitsuba: Was Toushi-kun alright? Did he ever get out of that position? (Class started teasing, making both Mitsuba and Toushi blush.)

Ginpachi: Oi oi, settle down, you zoo animals. Please continue.

Mitsuba: Uhm… I… I'm just wondering sensei because… it wasn't told if he got out or not.

Ginpachi: I'm sorry but I don't know the answer to that Mitsuba-chan. Maybe Gorilla boy here can help you.

Kondo: Hai, I found him later that day when I went to the restroom to take a dump myself. It was really stinky when I went there. Anyway, he called for my attention when he heard me enter the room. That's how I found him. Lucky for him, I brought an extra roll of toilet paperr since Sougo told me that the toilet papers were all out on all the stalls.

Sougo: That's right, Aneue. I even took a picture of what happened. (shows phone to Mitsuba)

Toushi: BAKAYAROU, DON'T SHOW THAT TO HER!"(tries to get phone)

Kamui: Nice one, Sougo! Respect!

Takasugi: Tsk… Weirdos…

Ginpachi: Oi, stop that. We're still on class hours. You can do that later during dismissal. (everybody went back to their seats)

Anyway, any other questions? Yes, Zura…

Zura: Zura janai, Katsura da! That also goes to you, author-sama. You better change my name in the next line.

Katsura: That's better. Anyway, is it true that you couldn't get Tsukuyo-dono out of your head while you were trying to sleep?

Ginpachi: No, it's not true… It's only sugar and Ketsuno Ana in my mind.

Katsura: Didn't you just say that you can't get over her smile?

Ginpachi: YAMAZAKI! (made Zura confused)

Yamazaki: Hai.

Ginpachi: Front and center. (Yamazaki walking to front) I noticed that you were eating anpan over there. Hand over them over.

Sakamoto: Ooh, you're in big trouble now, kid. Ahahahahaha, ahahaha, ahaha, aha!

(Yamazaki hands over the bag of anpans while Ginpachi grabbed one.)

Ginpachi: Now how did that go again… Day 1 of being pissed by my class, (throws an anpan in Zura's face, knocking him out) I sparking an anpan into Zura's face. Did I get that right, Yamazaki?

Yamazaki: Hai, it was perfect, sensei.

Ginpachi: Okay, I'll just take three more just in case… You can go back to your seat now and continue eating anpan. (Yamazaki goes back to his seat) Okay, last question for the day… Yes, Sa-chan.

Sa-chan: I think everything is wrong about that chapter.

Ginpachi: Why is that?

Sa-chan: First off, how is it that it's Tsukki's birthday when it's already posted in June. It should've been my birthday. Second is that, it shouldn't have been Tsukki in that position with you sensei, it should've been me. Everything was so perfect in that moment except maybe, instead of wearing a boring kimono, I could've been wearing a skimpy outfit and instead of holding my hand you can just spank me in the ass… Eeeeeekkkkkkkk!

Ginpachi: Day 1 of my class, annoying me: Log number 2: (throws an anpan in Sa-chan's face, knocking her out as well) I sparking an anpan into a kunoichi bitch's face.

Otae: That's karma for you for trying to ruin the author's work, Sa-chan.

Ginpachi: Okay, that ends today's lesson and readers, don't forget to rate and review.

* * *

**A/N: **Ok, that concludes this chapter. Whew, that was a long one. Hope you liked it. By the way, my next update might take a bit longer to finish since it's already the start of school in my place and being a college student doesn't help either. Anyway, next chapter will tackle some OkiKagu action and the start of the investigation of the smuggling group of Gintoki and company. Thanks for reading and don't forget the reviews guys… Stay tuned…


	3. You Always Feel Groggy After Waking Up

**A/N**: Minna, sorry for the long long update, I accidentally overwritten my entire chapter with a new one without saving it first. I also didn't have a back up for it so I have to start from scratch. I'm really sorry. I should've updated 2 weeks ago. This chapter was so long that I decided to cut it into two chapters. The next chapter will come real soon and not as long as this one took to update. I know I promised that there will be Oki Kagu moments for this chapter, but then again, it's too long that I decided to put it in the next one. Anyway, I'm sorry for the commotions… Goumen… Btw, I haven't seen the movie yet F*CK! Even though I already read the spoilers, they're not enough!

* * *

**Kurasuchi:** Sensei, thank you for editing and beta reading my fic. I owe you a lot. Sorry If I haven't sent this to you first to beta read… I really need to update first…

**Redguy221:** Don't worry, Zura will have more screen time. I'm planning to add some Zura/Matsu moments in here as well.

**Okita Kagura, Hossein-movie, pickyournoseinprivate, victoriqa and Juliedoo: **Thank you for enjoying my fic. I really appreciate all your support.

* * *

**Chapter 3: You Always Feel Groggy After Waking Up**

* * *

It was early in the morning when Tsukuyo woke from her sleep. She checked the clock beside her futon and it read, 5:10 in the morning. She also saw Kagura who was sleeping peacefully in a separate futon beside her. Seeing that it was still very early and assuming that everyone was still asleep, the blond kunoichi decided to lie down for a while and try to catch a little more sleep. While she was there, she tried to remember everything that happened from last night.

Everything that happened during that time seemed to be cloudy and unclear in her mind. To her, that moment felt like no one existed in her world except for _him_. Everything felt so perfect to her that it was like she was living in a fantasy. Then it hit her, what if it was just a fantasy? What if it was just a dream that she didn't noticed that she was having because of her delight during her birthday? What if… all of it wasn't real at all?

Suddenly, she saw something shining in her dark room, reflecting what little light that is being given by the break of dawn. Because of the darkness that impaired her vision, she couldn't tell what it was yet, she could feel something cold and hard wrapping around her left arm. She tried to feel it with her other hand, she felt some spherical objects, presumably beads and by their texture, they were made from wood.

Finally, she realized that everything from last night was all real. She and Gintoki did have that encounter at the engawa talking nonsense and just messing with each other and most of all, she was really delighted to know that the gift that Gintoki gave her was real as it gets.

But, she realized something. What if it was just because her birthday that the silver permed samurai was like that to her? What if he doesn't actually wanted to be with her? I mean who can blame the guy? He is always getting hit by a barrage of kunais by the Shinigami Tayou for some petty reasons and gets beaten up time whenever she gets drunk. The guy must have developed some kind of trauma towards her.

She shook that feeling aside; after all, they are good friends. But what if she feels something else? With all of the mixed up thoughts entering her mind, Tsukuyo's mind become jumbled up, making her unable to get any more sleep. Seeing that there is no possible way for her to doze off again, she decided to stood up from her futon carefully not to sleep her sleeping roommate.

Upon opening the fusuma of her room, she was greeted by a white curly furred puppy who leaned his body on her shin.

"Ohayou Gozaimasou Shiro. How was yer' first night here huh?" asked Tsukuyo as she lifted the puppy and placed it between her arms.

"Ohayou Gozaimasou Tsukuyo. You're up early today." said by a familiar voice coming from the hallway.

Tsukuyo looked towads the direction of the voice and found a beautiful woman on a wheelchair. It was Hinowa. **(I'm assuming that Hinowa can actually get to her chair easily by herself. or the place where she sleeps is slightly elevated so that she could get in and out of the chair easily."**

When she saw the older woman, her hair was still undone, letting them flow just above her elbows and she still had no make - up on. By the looks of it, it seems that she had also just woke up.

"Ohayou Gozaimasu Hinowa. I didn't expect to see ya' up this early as well. I thought that you would be up around 6 or somethin'."

"Actually I should still be asleep for now. I usually wake up during quarter to six. Besides, this is the time that I always prepare breakfast for Seita – kun and you."

"I see… So, how was Shiro with you durin' the night?"

"Well, he was a bit noisy earlier… Okay, a lot noisy… to tell you honestly, he kind of woke me up around four. I guess when he woke up, he wanted to go out and probably go to your room Tsukki. And by the looks of things, it seems that he really missed you very much."

Listening to Hinowa, Tsukuyo couldn't help but feel guilty for Shiro's behaviour. He was her responsibility to begin with. She only just let Shiro stay with them because Seita insisted and Kagura slept in her room.

"Sumimasen. I'll let him stay in ma' room for now on so that he won't cause ya' any more problems."

"Nah, it's alright Tsukki. Bu if you insist then it's fine by meas well… Say, wanna help me prepare breakfast for everyone?"

Tsukuyo was hesitatnt to answer. She didn't know how to cook much but she didn't want to leave Hinowa with all the work. Ultimately, she decided to go with her request.

"I guess I'll help but… I don't know how to cook breakfast… to be honest… I don't know how to cook almost anything at all…"

"Don't worry, I'll teach you. It's easy like learning how to walk." cheered the handicapped woman.

Suddenly, Hinowa noticed the bracelet on Tsukuyo's arm that was given to her last night by Gintoki. Even though she knew everything about it, Hinowa decided to ask her about it just to see what reaction she will give.

"Tsukuyo what a pretty bracelet you have there."

Just as she expected, it caught the younger woman in surprise. Tsukuyo didn't think that Hinowa would notice the bracelet. So out of a panicked state, she thought of a lie that would maybe slip her through.

"Uhm… I bought it… from… a stall… yesterday… while patrollin'?"

Hinowa just giggled in reply to her statement. She just knows that the blond kunoichi was lying based on her tone making Tsukuyo blush in embarrassment.

"Come on Tsukki, don't lie to me. It was given by Gintoki is it?"

This hit her on the spot. _'How could've she knew about that? Maybe she just guessed it' _said Tsukuyo to herself.

"Uhm… No… it ain't… uhm… I bought it… for ma' self… I just thought that it was beautiful so I bought it."

Listening to Tsukuyo's explanation, the older woman couldn't help but break a short laugh about it.

"Wha… what's so funny huh?"

"Oh come now Tsukuyo, do you honestly want me to believe that you would actually buy something to make yourself beautiful? A woman who had sworn that she had abandoned her femininity decided to buy an accessory to make herself more attractive?"

Hinowa had trapped her in a corner. There was no other lie that she could think of that may help her in this predicament. She just knows her that well.

_"OI BAKA AUTHOR, CAN'T YOU THINK OF A BETTER LIE?"_

Sorry Tsukki, that's the way it is. (gets hit by a kunai) All right all right I'll think of something next time.

Going back, Tsukuyo finally conceded. So, she decided to come clean and tell everything about it to her. "Yes, it was given by Gintoki to me last night. I just bumped into him in the engawa and we just started talking and that's that." explained Tsukuyo.

"Well, seeing that you had slept with that around your arm the entire night, I can say that you liked it very much don't you Tsukuyo?"

With a drop of her shoulders and a tighter grip on Shiro, Tsukuyo nodded her head.

"Okay, this will be our little secret." said Hinowa making the Shinigami Tayou, ease up a little.

"Now, let's start making breakfast shall we?"

After laying the puppy down on a zabuton at the dining area, the two Yoshiwaran women proceeded to the kitchen.

* * *

Meanwhile at Kabuki – chou during the same time, a certain ramen store called Hokuto Shinken was preparing to start the day. Inside was a long, blond woman with her hair done in a ponytail, kneading on a lump of noodle dough while waiting for her broths to cook at the stoves.

Seeing her garbage bin already full with trash, Ikumatsu decided to take it back out on the dumpster. Because of her petite structure, she had a hard time dragging the big pile of garbage towards the dump. When she finally reached it, she tried to lift the heavy bag. Though she was used to doing this every morning, this time, she dropped it.

Upon dropping the big pile of trash, she heard a fainted voice of a man. Instinctively, she looked below the bag to find a man wearing a blue yukuta and a dirty white robe outside. Once the heavy bag was out of the way, she saw the man has silky long black hair which was a sight to look at yet his face was covered with caked blood.

"Ka… Katsura - san!? Wh… what are you doing here?"

Hearing a familiar voice, the Joui leader squinted his eyes for a couple of times. Though his sight was still not clear, he could see that here was a woman in front of him. Squinting his a eyes a couple of times more, he can now see that it was not just any other woman. It was a woman whom he holds dear.

"I… Ikumatsu – dono? Wh… what are you doing in my room?" asked Katsura who thought that everything was a dream since he knew that the thought of Ikumatsu appearing at his room could only happen in his dreams or his imagination. Seeing that there is nothing wrong with whatever you do in a fantasy world, Katsura decided to just go with it. "Get back on the fusuma with me will you? I think I want some cuddling action right now."

Annoyed by what the long haired samurai had said, Ikumatsu grabbed an empty bottle and dropped it right onto his head, bringing him back to reality.

"You're not on your room you fool. You're hardly inside your house. You're in a dumpster, hugging a bag of rotting vegetable peelings. Now will you tell me why are you covered in blood?"

Unfortunately, the alleged Bakudan Ma, couldn't remember anything that had happened last night. After telling Ikumatsu about the crisis that he was having with the Jouishishi, he told her about his day yesterday at Yoshiwara. When Ikumatsu heard him say Yoshiwara, the ramen cook immediately whacked Zura once again with another bottle yet it looked like he felt nothing at all.

"WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU DOING IN THAT PLACE HUH? WERE YOU WASTING YOUR MONEY ON SOME PROSTITUTE LIKE A MAN WITH NOTHING ELSE TO DO BUT PLEASURE HIMSELF?"

Her sudden outburst of rage caught Katsura by surprise. Why would she care if he was in Yoshiwara and why did she already whack him without even letting him finish his story. Shaking those useless things aside, the long haired man continued with his story.

"I was spying in Yoshiwara since my source told me that that is where my ghost members were hanging out presently. After a whole day of spying, Elizabeth and I didn't manage to get anything from it so we decided to go back and try again the next day. It was already past 8:00 when we arrived at Kabuki – chou and there where barely any lights on to help us see the way. Once we reached the bridge, I saw someone jumped Elizabeth from behind but I don't know who or what. Soon after, I've got hit myself and that was all that I could remember. Judging from the headache that I am currently experiencing a while ago and the bruises that I can feel on my head (touches it and squints after in reaction to the pain) I'm guessing I was hit by a blunt object."

Listening to Zura's story, (ZURA JA NAI, KATSURA DA) Ikumatsu started to worry about his safety. Maybe he's sticking his nose in a business that he should not even dare touch. What if he continued his actions that may put his life in jeopardy next time? What if the tragedy that she experienced last time happens again with him? Her pondering though was suddenly interrupted when the two head a rustling over the dumpster.

There they saw a white bag shaking back and forth against the others possibly to break free. Curious to know what was it, Katsura decided to poke it with a stick. After a couple of pokes, the white bag turned around revealing it to be none other than his beloved Renho partner in crime, Elizabeth.

"Elizabeth there you are I thought you we… Oof…"

Katsura's words were suddenly stopped on its tracks when Elizabeth who was wearing his Eligo 13 face **(parody of Golgo 13)** hit him on the head with his sign board, knocking him down on the ground and raised it after. It read, '_Are you the punk who hit me in the head yesterday?'_

It seems as though the Renho thought that he was captured by whoever took them out last night and acted solely on his own instincts. One he realized that it was Katsura, he quickly removed his mask and raised another sign board. _'Oh Katsura – dono, I didn't see you there. Sumimasen.'_

"El… Elizabeth… Why…" weakly asked the said man as blood had once again started to flow from his already battered and ultimately lost his consciousness.

* * *

Back in Yoshiwara, Hinowa and Tsukuyo were preparing the ingredients that they were going to use in their meals. First on their agenda was preparing the steamed rice and the miso soup since those two requires a longer time to cook than the others.

Since Tsukuyo has already have an experience in using a knife, **(as seen during the Time Skip Arc)** she sliced through the vegetables and fish that were needed for the soup with ease while Hinowa washed the rice and placed it in a very large wooden container since they both know the kind of appetite Kagura has.

While the two dishes were cooking, Hinowa thought Tsukuyo on how to grill fish. Again, when it comes to the slicing part, the blond kunoichi didn't have a problem with execution. Next, the older woman showed her what to season the fish with before putting it on the grill and how much will she use. After showing her once, she let Tsukuyo do the rest. Once she was done, Hinowa told her to put one first on the grill as she lowers the heat on the rice since it started to boil.

What she saw next kind of caught her off guard. The fish that Tsukuyo into the grill, started to dry out and flake onto the bottom of it. Thinking that the fish was already cooked, sukuyo, scrapped it off with a spatula, placed it on a plate and showed it to her.

By the way Hinowa looked at it, Tsukuyo knew that it was a failure.

"Sumimasen Hinowa – san. I really dunno' how ya' do it…"

"Don't worry about it. It's actually my fault that I forgot to mention that rub oil first on the grill with a brush so that the fish won't stick onto the bars and you should also have to place it skin first for about 80 percent of the total time to cook to reduce the risk of sticking and overcooking." explained Hinowa.

She then showed her how it is done properly. Soon after, Tsukuyo tried again with her first piece of fish. This time, she finally succeeded. Listening to Hinowa's notes, the Shinigami Tayou was able to produce a golden brown grilled fish that was good enough to meet Hinowa's standards. Seeing that she could handle it by herself, Hinowa decided to let her do the rest while she preps up the utensils and ingredients that they would use on their next meal.

While the two women were busy preparing breakfast, a teenage boy whom we don't know though looks kind of familiar was led to the kitchen by the delicious scent of the food that was being cooked.

"_OI WHAT DO YOU MEAN A TEENAGE BOY THAT WE DON'T KNOW? IT'S ME SHINPACHI SHIMURA!"_

Really? You don't look like Shinpachi. You don't have the thing that makes Shinpachi, Shinpachi.

"_IS IT REALLY ONLY THE GLASSES THAT REMINDS YOU OF ME?"_

Yes. Didn't your entire existence almost came to an end when you lost your glasses during you're cross over with Sket Dance?

"Hmp. Fine, you win Author – san."

Okay, now that's settle with, let's get back to the story…

"Ohayou Gozaimasu… Wow, everything smells delicious." greeted SHINPACHI.

"Ohayou Gozaimasu Shinpachi – kun" greeted the two women. "You're up early." stated Hinowa.

"I always wake up during this time. I'm kind of a morning person actually."

He then noticed Tsukuyo, grilling the slices of fish. To his knowledge, it was unknown to him that the Shinigami Tayou actually knew how to cook since she was always on patrol and it was always Hinowa who was in charge of the task whenever they visit Yoshiwara.

"Tsukuyo – san, you're cooking smells delicious. I didn't know that you were a good cook."

"I'm glad that you like it so far Shinpachi – kun. Actually, this is ma' first time cookin'. Hinowa just taught me the things that I have to do and I just try and copy them."

"Oh I see. Speaking of cooking, do you want me to help you guys around here? Being a chef is actually my thing." proposed the young man.

"No, don't worry about it. You're our guest. Allow us to do these ourselves. In the meantime, just sit back and relax for a while alright?"

Unable to say no to such a request, Shinpachi complied with what Hinowa had requested but before he left kitchen, he noticed something.

"Tsukuyo – san, that's a really nice bracelet. Did somebody give that to you for your birthday?"

"Uhm… I uhm… sort of…"

Shaken by the question, the woman in question could not think of anything to reply with. Everything lay silent in the kitchen until Hinowa spoke up.

"I gave that to her yesterday Shinpachi – kun. I figured that it would be nice to give her something that can make her look more like a girl."

Hearing the older woman's explanation, Tsukuyo couldn't help but to rebut her last statement but since she was providing her cover, she decided to just let it slide… for now.

"Okay then, I'll leave you two here and do your magic. I'll be strolling outside for a while to stretch my bones while I wait for everyone to wake up. I can't wait to taste your food Tsukuyo – san."

With that, Sinpachi left the house and walked outside of Hino – ya while the two women continued cooking.

* * *

It was past six when Katsura regained his consciousness. He woke up lying down in a comfortable futon covered with a soft blanket, protecting his body from the cold spring breeze. He also felt that his head was now covered with bandages since it felt heavier than usual to him. In his current position, the long haired samurai surveyed his surroundings. Looking at the room, he found a mirror on top of a short cabinet on his left with brushes and different kinds of make – up surrounding it. To his right, he found a photo frame of a man and a picture of a young couple beside it. Upon further examination of the photo, he saw that the woman in the picture was someone that was close to him. Judging from the stuff that he found and the picture, he concluded that he was in Ikumatsu's room.

Suddenly, the fusuma of the room opened, revealing Ikumatsu carrying a tray with a bowl of freshly made soba. She noticed that Katsura had finally opened his eyes after being whacked silly by Elizabeth like a mole a while ago.

"Ohayou Gozaimasu sleepy head, feeling any better now?"

"Yes quite, but I still feel a bit dizzy though."

"That can't be helped. You've were hit very hard in the head a while ago. But it should feel better later. I've put some ointment on your wound to help ease up the pain." explained the blond woman. "Did you know how hard it was to carry you up here?"

Katsura was surprised on what Ikumatsu had said. How could a woman with a small structure like her manage to carry him from where he was all the way to her room? Better yet, why would she even bother bringing him up in her room?

"Did you carry me by yourself Ikumatsu – dono?"

"Of course not, I had Elizabeth to help out too obviously. Besides how could I carry someone who is almost twice my weight huh?"

With the mention of his partner's name, the Joui leader began to wander about his whereabouts.

"By the way, Ikumatsu – dono, where is Elizabeth?"

"He's downstairs eating soba as well. Last time I checked he was already eating his 3rd bowl. Katsura – san, haven't you been feeding him properly? It's like he hasn't been eating for days. You know that there is a law that prohibits cruelty toward animals right? You can also get arrested if authorities find out about it."

"Animal ja nai, Renho da and no, we always eat regularly." defended Katsura. _'He's just probably taking advantage of the situation that we're in and going to make pay for everything that he's eaten.'_

"Anyway, better eat your soba before it gets cold." suggested the blond cook.

Complying with her, Katsura tried to sit up but as he rose from the futon, he suddenly felt a sudden sharp pain on his head. Seeing him in that state, Ikumatsu quickly came to his aid, assisting him in lying back down. Once he was down again, Katsura started to get a bit better.

"Oi,what the heck is happening to you huh? That's it. You're staying here until you fully recover."

"Goumenasai, but I must decline your offer. Elizabeth and I still have some unfinished wor…"

"URUSAI!" interrupted the ramen cook, stopping Katsura on his tracks.

"Do you think that I will allow you to go back out there in that state and have your life in jeopardy? I don't think so. Now hold still and let me feed you."

He was hesitant at first but ultimately, he went along with her and ate as she fed him one spoonful after the other. While Katsura was happily enjoying a bowl of his favourite food, he suddenly thought of something.

"Ikumatsu - dono, aren't you supposed to be preparing for your shop's opening right now?"

"Actually, I've asked Elizabeth to finish preparing everything that was needed for the opening as payment for the bowls of soba that he has eaten. I just showed him once what to do and before I knew it, he was kneading the noodle dough like crazy as if he has Solar Hands **(A special inborn ability from Yakitate Japan that makes the person's hand very warm that is every baker wished they could have)**."

Feeling complacent with how everything is turning out, Katsura had finally relaxed. He then continued eating the bowl of soba until the bowl was finished.

* * *

Tsukuyo had finally finished grilling all the slices of fish and each one of them looked stunning and appetizing. Hinowa also commended her apprentice for a job well done.

"You're a natural at this Tsukuyo. You're learning really fast."

"It's all thanks to you Hinowa – san. Without yer' guidance I'll probably end up servin' ill tasti'n' dishes to 'em."

"Well, you know, it's probably for the best that you learn to cook a dish or two now or else Gin – san won't like you." teased the handicapped woman.

With the mention of his name, Tsukuyo's face started to flush.

"WH… WHY DID THAT BAKA'S NAME SUDDENLY CAME OUT OF THE BLUE HUH?"

Hearing her companion's response, Hinowa couldn't help but giggle about it. After that, she laid out the ingredients needed for their next dish. On the counter was four, sugar, salt, eggs and water. Although she may not know what she was planning to do with them, Tsukuyo knew that there was something missing from the list based on the expression on Hinowa's face.

"Is there somethin' wrong?"

"It seems like we're out of milk. We can't make pancakes if we don't have milk."

Milk… Thinking about it, Tsukuyo remembered that she still had that carton of strawberry milk, sitting in the fridge but, she doesn't know if it is okay to make it as an alternative, since she haven't eaten a pancake that is strawberry flavoured yet. But still, she decided to ask Hinowa about it.

"Hinowa – san, is it okay if we use strawberry milk instead?"

"Hmm… I'm not sure about it. Why don't we ask Gin – san about this then. He is the expert when it comes to strawberry right?"

"Nah, we don't need that bastard for this. Besides, he's still asleep and he would just probably drink the entire carton if we ever let him get his hands on it."

Seeing that they had no other choice, Hinowa went with Tsukuyo's idea. After all, there are other foods to choose from just in case it doesn't taste good. With her approval on the matter, the Shinigami Tayou, get the milk from the fridge and placed it on the counter. Just like before, Hinowa showed her what to do. First they mixed together all the dry ingredients. Next, they added the beaten eggs, followed by the water. Finally, they added the milk since it was the 'wild card' from the ingredients they need.

Upon pouring the said liquid, Shiro immediately stood off from the zabuton that he was lying down at and sprinted towards the kitchen in front of Tsukuyo, jumping up and down continuously.

"Ei, easy, easy, down boy, down." commanded Tsukuyo but to no avail. He continued on jumping back and forth in front of her like a kid who drank coffee for the first time.

"Wow, it looks like he really is into that stuff huh? He's just like Gin – san last night when you brought out that carton and poured it into his bowl."

"Yeah, it looks like it… WAIT A MINUTE? WHY DID THAT BAKA'S NAME SUDDENLY CAME OUT OF THE BLUE AGAIN HUH?"

"What? I'm just stating the facts Tsukki. He is like Gin – san when it comes to strawberry. Besides, we don't know anybody else who likes strawberry so much rather than him and now Shiro."

"Alright, fine you win. Antway, how much does this batter need so that I could still give Shiro some?"

"Just give me a half of cup and I think we're good to go."

Pouring the strawberry milk to the needed amount, Hinowa returned the carton back to Tsukuyo and she gave the rest of it to Shiro. Seeing the white puppy drink happily from his bowl while wagging his tail back and forth, the two women can't help but giggle at the sheer cuteness of him.

Going back to the batter that they were making, Hinowa asked Tsukuyo to mix it until it forms a thick, creamy consistency and no more lumps can be found in the mixture. A couple of minutes have passed and the batter was good enough in the older woman's eyes. The next thing they do was to melt a slice of butter in a pan so that the batter would not stick while it cooking. Hinowa did it first so that Tsukuyo could follow after. She poured the mixture on the pan until it was the size of a small pate. After a few minutes, the surface started to bubble, signalling her that the side facing the pan was already cooked. Grabbing the pan with one hand, Hinowa flinged the pan upward, causing the pancake to flip in a one hundred eighty degree rotation on the pan. After a minute more, it was finally done.

Upon putting it in a small plate, the two women decided to taste what they have done. Cutting a small portion of the pancake, the Hino – ya duo then raised it to their mouths.

"OH WOW THIS IS SO DELICIOUS." stated Tsukuyo.

"Yeah you're absolutely right Tsukki This is wonderful. It taste better than an ordinary pancake since the strawberry helps in giving it an acidic taste, balancing the sweetness to it… Nice decision making Tsukuyo. If you continue doing decisions with food like this, you can be a good cook someday probably like Youichi Ajiyoshi. **(Main character of the cooking based anime, Mister Ajikko.)**

Tsukuyo was delighted to hear that comment from Hinowa. Though she know that such a thing could never happen, it's good to know that she can cook, unlike somebody else's older sister.

"_Were you saying something Author – san (cracks fists)?" _

Uhm… no Tae chan. I wasn't saying anything… honest…

Whew close call. Anyway after showing Tsukuyo how to cook the pancake, Hinowa let her do a piece. She was doing well for the early part then came the flipping. Remembering what the older woman did, Tsukuyo gipped the handle with one hand and fling it with all her might throwing the pancake into the air. Following the trajectory of it, she found it landing on Hinowa's face.

Panicked that she might get burns from the heat of the pancake, Tsukuyo quickly filled a glass with water and threw it onto Hinowa's face, blowing the pancake out of the way.

"Are ya' alright Hinowa- san?"

"I'm fine Tsukuyo, until you poured water onto my face."

"Su… Sumimasen…"

"It's alright, don't worry about it. It's your first time anyway and flipping takes quite some practice before you could do it yourself."

She then handed the blond kunoichi a turner and instructed her to use it for now since she was still inexperienced. And sure enough, Tsukuyo executed it perfectly. Seeing that Tsukuyo can now do it erself, she decided her to do the rest while she changes clothes in her room.

* * *

It was already a quarter before seven when Gintoki had woke up from his slumber. Brushing his eyes to get a better view of his surroundings, he first thing that he noticed was the folded futon from his side. He realized that Shinpachi had already woke up before him which was no surprise since he knows that the teenage boy had always been a morning person.

Satisfied with the amount of slep that he already had, Gintoki stood up from his futon, folded it and placed it in the cabinet together with Shinachi's. He then opened the fusuma of his room and went out. Upon leaving the room, he was immediately greated by a delectable, savoury scent that made his tummy grumble.

Following the delicious scent, the permed samurai was lead into the dining area where different meals were placed on top of the kotatsu. The ambient view of the food that was sitting there was indeed a sight to be seen in Gintoki's eyes. With his drool threatening to fall from his mouth from excitement, he decided to take a bite at one of the dishes, particularly, the grilled fish.

But just when Gintoki could even lay a finger on it, someone suddenly gripped his hand, stopping him from his tracks.

"Oh no you don't Gin – san. You must wait until everybody is at the table before you could eat." stopped Hinowa who was now in fresh new clothes and her hair was now fixed to its regular style.

"Aw… come on Hinowa – san, just one bite. Everything looks so delicious."

"Goumenasai Gin – san, but no means no. You know what, why don't you help out in bringing the other food over from the kitchen while you wait?"

Seeing that he won't be able to have a bite of anything while Hinowa was there, the silver permed samurai decided to help out.

Upon arriving at the kitchen, he saw Tsukuyo near the stove, wearing a white apron, cooking something. Just like Shinpachi a while ago, he was also surprised to find the Hyakka Kashira to be cooking. Upon seeing her cooking the food, the feeling of hunger a while ago that Gintoki had when haw the food suddenly vanished.

Apparently, the memories of the last time he experienced Tsukuyo's cooking had already made a lasting impression on his tongue. During the time that he was living together with the girls which turned out to be a prank **(Scandal Arc)**, everyone cooked something for Gintoki when it was time for supper. Aside from Otose's cooking, which is quite delectable considering that he always eats at Snack Otose when she is not bugging him about the rent, everyone's dishes were terrible. He wouldn't dare touch Otae's 'dark matter' because he already knew what it could do to anyone who tries to eat it. He didn't like Sacchan's because he doesn't like nato, Kyuubei's just put his ass on fire when she fed him her spicy curry via his butt and Tsukuyo's hotpot just tasted bad. Though she made it sweet, it just tasted wrong.

Curious on what she was doing, Gintoki crept behind her and saw that she was cooking what seem to be some sort of pinkish pancakes which immediately had a bad impression on him since regular pancakes are golden brown. Sensing that somebody was in the kitchen other than Hinowa, Tsukuyo instinctively turned around and threw a kunai at the 'stranger'. Upon further observation, she found that what she hit was none other than Gintoki Sakata who was now lying down on his back as blood started shooting up from his head.

"THE 'ELL WERE YOU DOIN' CREEPIN' UP ON ME LIKE THAT HUH?"

"I SHOULD ASK YOU THAT QUESTION! WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING GOING BACK TO COOKING AGAIN HUH?"

"I'm just helping Hinowa cook breakfast." explained Tsukuyo.

"What do you mean helping Hinowa cook breakfast? YOU CAN'T COOK!"

"THAT DOESN'T MEAN THAT I CAN'T LEARN YOU BASTARD!"

With both parties not giving way to the other, the argument went on and on until Gintoki suddenly smelled something burning, stopping the argument for the meantime. Afterwards, clusters of black smog started coming out from the pan that Tsukuyo was cooking at. Seeing the burning disaster, the permed samurai couldn't help but give out a face of fear. Noticing the change of emotions, Tsukuyo couldn't help but wonder what was up with him.

"Oi, Gintoki, the heck is with that face huh? Have you finally let me off 'yer hook of doubt?

"TSU… TSUKKI! YOU'RE PAN… IT'S ON FIRE!" yelled the man in question.

Listening to the shriek of her companion, the Shinigami Tayou quickly turned around and found the pan literally on fire. Quite on the panicked state, Tsukuyo carelessly grabbed the pan by it side and threw it right into the sink, causing a loud crashing sound in the inside the house. Because of her carelessness, she managed to get her right hand burned in the process as she blew on it to somehow help ease the pain but to no avail.

Seeing what happened to Tsukuyo, Gintoki quickly grabbed a deep pot from the counter and rapidly filled it up with cold water. He then grabbed the kunoichi by her right wrist and dipped it in. Tsukuyo was really caught off guard by the actions of the man that she considered to be her own personal fault finder. She really expected that upon seeing she burned her hand that he would probably laugh so hard that he would burst his gut. Maybe she might have judged his character a bit prematurely to not notice that he also had a serious, caring side within him.

His hands felt so hard, probably because of his training with the sword over the years, yet they felt so comfortable and secure. It's like she felt safe within his grasps.

"Does that feel a bit better?" asked Gintoki, snapping Tsukuyo out of her mini trance.

"Uhm… yeah, quite a bit…"

He then lifted her hand and checked it for a while.

"Looks like it's just slightly burned nothing too serious about it. Still, we have to dress it properly so that it won't worsen. Do you have like a first aid kit or something?"

"Yeah, it's in the cabinet by the bathroom."

"Alright then, wait here 'till I get back."

After a couple of minutes, Gintoki came back with the first aid kit. He then sprayed the afflicted area with a cooling agent to sooth up the pain and the burn and dressed it with a bandage. While he was wrapping her hand, Tsukuyo asked him something.

"Aren't you gonna laugh at me?"

"Huh?"

"I said, aren't you gonna laugh at me like ya' always do?"

"Why would I laugh at someone who got burned? I'm not that much of a sadist to be entertained by people's pain like that kid from the Shinsengumi."

The kunoichi was taken aback by her companion's answer. She did not expect this kind of answer coming out from Gintoki's own mouth. But her confusion towards him suddenly vanished when Gintoki decided to break the silence.

"Although it would be totally hilarious if I tell this to everyone later at the table and…"

His speech was then cut off when another kunai found its way through his head. Looking at his fierce companion, he saw her preparing to throw another kunai at him if he won't stop.

"Alright, alright fine, I won't tell anyone. Just don't throw another one of those things at me. My head isn't some kind of a pin cushion that you could just stick your little toys you know?"

"Just promise not to tell anyone about this, especially Hinowa. Got that?"

"Whatever… as long as I don't get another one of those sticking out of my head then fine."

Just as the two finally get into an accord, Gintoki finished dressing Tsukuyo's hand. The pain that she was feeling earlier was now only at a minimum. Suddenly, Shinpachi, who had just came back from his stroll and was now wearing his glasses came by the kitchen. Realizing of the teenage boy's presence, Tsukuyo immediately moved over to cover the view of the burnt pan and hid her hand as well.

"Tsukuyo – san, what happened in here? I heard a loud crash coming here at the kitchen as soon as I came back so I hurriedly come here to see what it was. And what are you doing here Gin – san?"

"Oh yeah, I forgot to ask you that a while ago. What exactly are you doin' here Gintoki?" followed up Tsukuyo.

"Hinowa asked me to help out placing the food out to the kotatsu while I wait for everyone to wake up or else I won't be able to eat anything until everyone is at the table. Damn it, why would she do that to poor me?"

"It's called manners Gintoki. Didn't anyone taught you about it when you were a kid?"

Irritated by the response of the kunoichi, Gintoki decided to tease her a bit. He then moved towards Shinpachi and tells him what happened a while ago.

"Patsuan, do you want to know what happened a while ago?"

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot. What did happen Gin – san?

With Tsukuyo being silent about it, Gintoki decided to move closer to his fellow Yorozuya, probably about to whisper something to him.

"You see Shinpachi what happened is that…"

The Shinigami Tayou noticed a smirk on his face as he cuffed his hands on his ear, signalling her that he was off to no good. Although he promised her that he would not tell anyone about the incident, Tsukuyo figured that he will tell Shinpachi a lie that will be equally or more embarrassing to that pan incident. So, she decided to take things in her own hands and moved in between the two boys, cutting off their conversation.

"Actually, what happened is that when Gintoki came out of the room, Shiro started chasin' him around, thinkin' that he was some kind of intruder. When they got to the kitchen, there was a wet spot on the floor and Gintoki slipped, causin' that loud crash that ya' heard. I guess Shiro has a territorial instinct within him whenever he feels that someone is tryin' to trespass on his home that he doesn't like."

After listening to Tsukuyo's story, Shinpachi stared at the Yorozuya Danna for a while. Then, he gave out an irritating smile followed by a burst of laughter.

"Gin – san got scared by a little cute dog… Oh man, this is rich. I'm gonna burst my gut if I don't stop laughing but I can't."

"OI, THAT WAS NOT THE THING THAT HAPPENED! I… IT WAS TSUKUYO… SHE BURNED THE PAN AND SPARKINGED IT ON THE SINK."

"Nice try Gin – san, but there's no way you could cover for your embarrassing moment. Anyway, I'm gonna go and wake up Kagura – chan. Maybe that little story would make a good alarm clock for her don't you think?" said Shinpachi as he left the two adults at the kitchen.

"I TOLD YOU, IT'S NOT LIKE THAT!" followed Gintoki up to somehow change the mind of his young subordinate but to no avail. Realizing on what has been done, he gave a cold glare on the kunoichi.

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT HUH?"

"It's called kill or be killed or in this case, shame or be shamed."

'_Drats, this bitch is smart. She already thought of what I was supposed to do before I could've even done it.__'_said the permed samurai to himself, annoyed that he was defeated by Tsukuyo at his own game. Suddenly, he started hearing some voices in his head.

'_Who are you callin' a bitch you permed asshole?'_

"WHAT THE HELL? HOW DID YOU HEAR WHAT I WAS THINKING!?" screamed the man in question who was wierded out of what just had happened.

"BAKA! YOU WERE MUTTERING WHAT YOU WERE THINKING LOUDLY ASSHOLE!"

Annoyed by the continuous insult by the Shinigami Tayou, Gintoki approached her, lessening the distance between them and gave her a cold stare.

"Call me an asshole… one more time… you bitch…" **(Parody of Hancok's line)**

As a reply, Tsukuyo inched forward as well and gave him back a stare of her own.

"And I dare you to call me a bitch again… you bastard."

Silence filled the room as the two continued their stare down with neither one wanting to back off from one another. Both won't even blink nor breathe. That was until Gintoki pulled off his infamous troll looking face, causing Tsukuyo to freak out and punch him in the face that sent him crashing into the other end of the room.

"WHAT DID YOU DO THAT FOR HUH?"

"B…Breaking the ice…? But it looks like… it became… more of… "Breking the Gin – san"

Feeling guilty of what she did, Tsukuyo came to Gintoki's side and helped him up.

"Better get movin' if you want to eat. You still have a lot of things to move."

"Speak for yourself. You still have some of your concoction to cook." said Gintoki as he grabbed the large wooden container of steamed rice.

"WOULD YA' JUST MOVE YER BUTT OUT OF HERE?" yelled Tsukuyo who already had enough of Gintoki's insults.

* * *

Ten minutes have passed. Gintoki has already finished putting all the food for breakfast in the kotatsu. He then noticed that throughout his routine of going to the dining room, the kitchen and vice versa, he did not get a glimpse of the two younger Yorozuya members. Curious on what's up with them, he decided to check them out. Upon opening the fusuma of the room, Gintoki saw Shinpachi hitting Kagura with his slipper.

"KAGURA – CHAN, WAHY WON'T YOU WAKE UP!?" yelled the teenage boy.

He then noticed their leader just outside the room, observing at what he was doing.

"Gin – san, help me with this. I can't get Kagura to wake up.

It was not an unusual scene for the permed samurai. At the house, even if he would cause a lot of ruckus in the morning, the Yato girl won't even budge. He believes that she could even sleep through a magnitude 10 earthquake. But, he has a sure fire way on how to wake her up ever since that incident at Zenzou's house with the assassins of the assassins squad, The Lethal Punishers.

"Oi oi, Patsuan, you're doing it all wrong. Haven't you learn anything during episode 208? If you want to wake her up, you have to bait her with food like what happened when we had those chuuberts remember?"

"Oh yeah, that's right. But Gin – san, do you have anything to bait her with?"

Gintoki then pulled out something from his yukuta. It was one of Tsukuyo's 'pink circles of doom' as he called them. Seeing what the silver permed samurai was holding, the young megane, was surprised and amused on how he was able to get one without Tsukuyo noticing it.

"Gi... Gin – san, how did you manage to sneak a pancake out from the alleged Kashira of the Hyakka?"

"Let me tell you something Patsuan… everyone has a blind spot even if that person is an elite kunoichi."

Satisfied with the explanation of the Yorozuya Danna, the two of them proceeded with their plan. Slowly, Gintoki started pushing his arm toward the sleeping girl's face while holding the pancake on his hand. Without any warning whatsoever, Kagura unconsciously clamped her mouth down on his hand like a vice grip.

With the feeling of pain starting to shoot in Gintoki's brain, he started flinging the sleeping Yato in the air back and forth to somehow shake her loose but to no avail. Her mouth was shut tight and she was still asleep.

"OI, LET GO OF MY HAND YOU DAMN KID! THIS ISN'T A SABU – NOBU SCENE **(During the Ikkoku Keisei arc)** AND THIS ISN'T EVEN A F*CKIN' DONUT! SHINPACHI, HELP ME OUT!"

Complying with Gintoki's cry for help, Shinpachi grabbed the adolescent girl by her ankles and tried to pull her out of Gintoki's wrist. With each tug, Shinoachi exerts more effort but then, the permed yelped once again in pain as Shinpachi tugged harder. Apparently, with each tug that he makes, Gintoki felt his hand popping out from its joint.

"OI! STOP IT! MY HAND IS GONNA GET TORN OUT IF YOU CONTINUE PULLING!"

"But if I let go, Kagura – chan will bite your hand clean off your arm."

"JUST DO IT!"

Obeying his request, Shinpachi let go of the Yato's feet. Once the other end was free, the permed samurai gave one last throw with all his strength. Finally he managed to fling the sleeping Yato off his wrist yet he sent her off crashing into Tsukuyo's dresser, causing for some of her clothes, particularly her undergarments, flying out of it with one of them landing 'safely' onto Gintoki's head.

With Kagura finally off his hand, Gintoki took the time to tend to his hand while lifting the undergarment first above his head to get a better view of it. Just like Isaburo, his right hand looked like it had been dislocated since it won't hold still and would just fall to whatever direction Gintoki places his arm to. Looking at the commotion that happened, Shinpachi couldn't help but feel nervous at what could happen next once the fusuma of the room slid open. Seconds later, his worst fears have come to life. The fusuma slid open, revealing the Shinigami Tayou who quickly came in after hearing the crashing sound that came from inside her room.

The first thing that she saw was that the dresser was totally ruined with Kagura who was still asleep inside the wreckage. Continuing her observation of her room, she found Shinpachi who was looking at her like he saw a ghost and finally Gintoki at the corner, with one of her panties stuck on his head.

Enraged and embarrassed at what just happened, Tsukuyo's face turned bright red and she threw every kunai that she had with her at the time to what she believed was nothing more than a perverted freak with every last one of them landing on his body. When the dust had finally clear, the permed samurai was lying on a puddle of his own blood.

Moments after the havoc, Kagura had finally woke up as she stretched her arms and legs and brushed her eyes.

"Ohayou Gozaimasou minna – san. What are you all doing here in Tsukki's room – aru?"

Slowly, Gintoki began writing a message on the tatami with his blood and read, 'We were here to wake a hibernating hippopotamus…' Upon reading the word 'hippopotamus', Kagura went berserk and started beating the hell out of the downed man with a barrage of punches and finally throwing his body against the wall.

Beaten, battered and bruised, the permed samurai had already enough. Wanting to give up, he pulled out a kunai impaled from his body, placed a white cloth on its tip and started waving it back and forth. Unfortunately, that white cloth was actually Tsukuyo's white panty.

With the already angered Shinigami Taiyou even more pissed than ever, she set her sights on the already beaten Gintoki and stomped on his head really, really hard.

"STOP SNATCHIN' MY UNDERWEAR YOU DAMN PERVERT!" yelled Tsukuyo.

Suddenly, the fusuma had once again slid open. This time it was Hinowa who was on the other side with Seita right behind her.

"Minna, breakfast is ready. Let's eat now before the food gets cold."

Everybody agreed with Hinowa and decided to go out and eat. But then, Shiro walked into the room, walking towards to the already injured Danna. Once he was close enough, he turned around, raised his leg and pissed all over him. Seeing what little dog did, everyone started laughing.

"Good boy Shiro, I guess that's what you call karma Gintoki." said the Shinigami Tayou.

"First, Gin – san was chased by a little dog, now he was used as a urinal by a little dog… This is too much..." said Shinpachi, who was laughing hard.

"I guess every pet just hate Gin – chan's guts really bad – aru and always treats him as a toilet." followed Kagura up.

Annoyed by the dog's show of total disrespect towards him, Gintoki, with all his remaining strength raised his good hand and attempted to hit the dog. Anticipating what the man that he embarrassed was about to do, Shiro leaped into the air, twirled in a 360 degree fashion and pissed once more on him, leaving the samurai down on the ground

Seita noticed something familiar about what Shiro was doing. It was like from some anime that he watches regularly.

"Minna, look at Shiro. Isn't that the signature move of Akamaru **(Kiba's dog from Naruto)** called the Dynamic Marking?"

"Oh yeah that's right - aru. Oi Tsukki, maybe you could train Shiro to be like a really cool kunoichi dog and he could be the mascot of the Hyakka." suggested the Yato.

"That's not a bad idea Kagura – chan, but Shiro is still young and I don't want him to get hurt. For now, he'll be just like any regular house pet."

"Well, he could still be a guard dog right?" asked Shinpachi.

"I guess…"

"Now, that all of that is setteled, let's all gon now and eat shall we?" proposed Hinowa.

"HAI!" replied everyone as they left the room except for Gintoki who was still lying down on the tatami.

* * *

At the kotatsu, everyone was enjoying the food that was prepared. Hinowa told everyone that it was Tsukuyo who was the one who cooked everything which was given a positive feedback by half of the gang. Shinpachi commended Tsukuyo for the taste her miso soup, pancakes and her grilled fish. Kagura just hogged her way through all the food that she could see, not paying attention to what it tasted like or something like that.

On the other hand, Gintoki, who was now all cleaned up, still had a bad feeling about the food since it was made by the said kunoichi. Seita also have second thoughts on the food that was served by her since he also had a bad memory of the last time that Tsukuyo served her a meal. It was during his lunch break from Temple School. The young boy was ashamed to eat his mother's stack of bento boxes because it wasn't the type of food that should be eaten at school or should be eaten together with other kids who only had simple bento lunches. So, his Tsukuyo – nee prepared him a simple tempura lunch for breakfast which what he wanted. But the moment he had a bite on it, his mouth started bleeding. Apparently the alleged tempura was made of a kunai, covered with bread crumbs, leaving the poor boy's mouth injured of quite some time.

Noticing that the two boys **(Yes two boys because Gin – san said that he was a boy at heart so there…) **weren't even trying to lay a finger on anything that made Tsukuyo feel down, she approached the two, with a plate on her hands.

"Seita – kun, Gin – san, you haven't touched anything yet. Better eat up you two. You both have a big day ahead. Now eat up guys." said the elder woman as she placed a three pieced stack on each of them.

"Uhm… I'm not hungry Hinowa – san. I… uhm… just remembered… I ate too much last night…" explained the lying samurai.

"Uhm… I'll just eat at school… We're going to have lunch early today anyway…"

Seeing that the two were being difficult to work with, Hinowa gave them both a clod stare that sent chills onto their spines. Realizing that there was no way out of this, Gintoki directed his attention into Seita and tried to engage him in a mental conversation.

'_Psst… Psst… OI!"_

'_Huh? Who's that?'_

'_Over here kid'_

'_Gi… Gin – san, what are you… how are you doing this?'_

'_Doesn't matter, listen to me. Can you sweet talk our way to your kaa – chan out of this?'_

'_I don't think so… Kaa – chan maybe nice, but sometimes she can easily turn from an angel into a demon when she losses her cool.I think if e pester her like this continuously, you'll have a chance to see that side of her.'_

Afraid of what might happen if he proceeds with his plan, Gintoki started to panic. What else could he pull out from his sleeve? Concluding that that there was no other option to do, he once again called on the young boy.

'_Are you sure that you can't do anything about this?'_

'_Do you want me to die as a kid?'_

'_Oh man, this is so dame dame, dame dame at all _**(Damemon's catchphrase in Digimon Xros Wars)**. _Alright, there's only one thing left to do. We eat the dreaded thing at the same time…'_

'_But that's suicide. What if we don't make it after this?'_

'_We have no other choice. We refuse, Hinowa – san kills us, but if we eat this abomination, we might have a slim chance to make it out alive.'_

Seeing the permed samurai's point, Seita decided to go with his plan. Simultaneously, the two boys, cut a small portion of the pancake, picked it up with their chopsticks and placed it in their mouths. Seconds later, the two of them fainted, with their heads crashing on the surface of the kotatsu.

Worried about what happened, Hinowa tended to her son, Tsukuyo and Shinpachi attended to Gintoki while Kagura paid no attention at all and just proceeded with her eating run.

"Sieta – kun, Seita – kun, are you alright?" asked his worried mother.

"Gin – san!"

"Oi, Gintoki, what happened to you?"

Despite the calls of the people around them both still were unresponsive. That was until Seita stood up with a pink headband on his hand and wore it. Hinowa felt confused on what just happened with her son all of a sudden. But Shinpachi knew what happened to him.

"SEITA – KUN… SEITA – KUN JUST TURNED TO ASUMA KAZUMA **(main protagonist of Yakitate Japan)**!"

"Ho… how the heck did ma' pancake turned him into a baker?" asked Tsukuyo.

"It was probably his body's initial reaction upon tasting your pancakes Tsukuyo – san. The effect doubled since he thought that it would taste really bad."

Seeing Sieta's change, Hinowa quickly came to his side and check up on him.

"Musuko, are you alright?" asked the handicapped woman. As she held his hands, she felt that they were really warm, even more than of a person having a fever. "Sieta – kun, your hand are like, burning. What happened to you?"

'_DONDAKE?! HE HAS SOLAR HANDS!'_

"I'm okay Kaa – chan really. Although, because of Tsukuyo – nee's tasty pastry, I feel like kneading dough of bread right now…"

He then reached under the kotatsu. Seconds later, Seita had somehow managed to get a bowl of bread dough from underneath and placed it on his side of the table and started kneading it, leaving his mother worrying about him.

"Shinpachi – kun, what am I going to do with him?"

"Don't worry about that Hinowa – san, Seita kun will be back to normal once the taste of the pancake leaves his tongue." explained the young man.

While everyone was worrying about Seita's current condition, unknown to them, Gintoki had finally regain his consciousness. Noticing that the downed man started moving, Tsukuyo immediately went to his side. But once she turned around, she was greeted by buffed, afro haired Gintoki wearing sunglasses.

"Gi… Gintoki… what the hell happened to you?"

Suddenly the now afro samurai, laid down a beat box on the tatami. The radio started playing a disco tune and Gintoki started dancing.

_Everybody move __  
__Can you get a little somethin' __  
__Got to do __  
__So better believe in (better believe in), better believe in yourself __  
__Oikaze riyoushite kyou to tatakae all tha soldiers __  
__Better believe in yourself __  
__Don't let tha time of your life pass by_

_Everybody move __  
__Can you get a little somethin' got to do __  
__So better believe in (better believe in), better believe in yourself __  
__Kono kazen naka de omae no yume wo tsukame Dreamers __  
__Just believe in (just believe in), just believe in yourself __  
__Yeah!  
_**(To All The Dreamers – Yakitatae Japan 2****nd**** ED song)**

Hearing the music playing, Shinpachi turned around to see what happened to their leader. Just like the Shinigami Tayou, Shinpachi was completely taken away with what he saw.

"DONDAKE?! GIN – SAN HAS BECOME MANAGER KEN MATSUSHIRO! **(The manager of Pantasia Southern Tokyo Branch where Kasuma works) **HOW DID THAT EVEN MADE SENSE?"

"Are you that ignorant Patsuan?" asked Manager Ken… err… I mean, Gintoki with a deep voice. "The pancake was made of strawberry milk instead of milk, giving it a pinkish color. It also contains higher calcium contents than of the regular pancakes because of the strawberry milk which I have been blabbing about since the start of the show. Because of this, massive amounts of Calcium ions enter my bloodstream, making the potassium ions release faster to balance out the electrolyte consistency inside my body resulting into higher activity of my cardiac system. With this, my cardiac muscle pumps oxygenated blood into my muscles causing them to hypertrophy."

"URUSAI!" yelled Tsukuyo as she hit Gintoki in the head with a frying pan. "Don't talk about scientific stuff like that in here. Our readers won't understand those. Only Author – san can understand medical stuff like that since that is what he studies about."

"That' right Gin – chan." reacted Kagura who stopped for a while on her eating run to drink a glass of water.

"But Kagura – chan, why didn't you and Shinpachi - kun had that kind of reaction? You did ate a stack or two of pancakes right?"

"That's because we're not expecting for your food to taste bad Tsukuyo – san, making the effects of its delectability to stay at its standard multiplier" explained Shinpachi. "By the way, I'm still wondering, why did they become Yakitate Japan characters? I mean, there are a lot of more famous anime out there."

Listening to what Shinpachi had said, it made Tsukuyo think. Suddenly, she noticed how the pancakes and the plates were arranged. She then pointed out that the pancakes were placed perfectly on the center of the rectangular, white ceramic plates looking like Japanese flags... JAPAN FLAG… JAPAN **(names of Kasuma's breads)**.

As morning passes by, everybody ate the food that Tsukuyo prepared until everything was gone mainly thanks to the Yato girl with the bottomless pit for a stomach. After breakfast, the Yorozuya prepped up for departure.

Outside Hinowa's house, Gintoki and the gang were about to give their final farewells before returning back to the surface.

"Ahh… finally, real money… You know, if you're going to reward me this handsomely Hinowa – san, then you could ca…" Gintoki was once again stopped on his tracks by a kunai that found its mark on his head again. "Anyway, those pancakes were really something Tsukki. Looks like I've doubted your cooking skills a bit… Maye next time I come here I could have some of those again."

"Don't push yer' luck that much Gintoki. I just did that because were out of milk."

"Arigatou Gozaimasu for everything Hinowa –san, Seita – kun, Tsukuyo – san and belated Happy Birthday." greeted Shinpachi.

" TSUUKKII!" yelled Kagura as she hugged Tsukuyo. "I'm gonna miss you – aru…"

"I'll miss you too Kagura – chan."

"Drop by at our place whenever you are free alright?"

"Of course."

"Sayonara minna – san." greeted Seita.

"Have a safe trip back home." said Hinowa.

"Take care…" said Tsukuyo.

After giving their final goodbyes, the Yorozuya went on their way. Minutes later they left, Tsukuyo had also prepared herself to resume her investigation on the case. But just as she was about to leave the house, a member of the Hyakka particularly, her second on command, Saya **(OC)** appeared.

"Kashira…"

"What is it Saya?"

"We have caught another member of the group that we have been trackin'"

"Does he know anything about the one who is running this shindig?"

"Hai… he says that he is called, 'The Deaf Man'"

**Class 3 – Z: Ginpachi – Sensei Segment:**

* * *

**?: **Konnichiwa, minna – san. Because Ginpachi – Senesi is out today due to sickness, I'll be your substitute today. For those who don't know me, I'm Tsukkichi – Sensei. So, do you have any questions about the chapter? Yes Elizabeth.

**Elizabet: **(Sign board up) Why was I on standby when Katsura – dono and Ikumatsu – dono were upstairs at Hokuto Shinken?

**Tsukkichi:** That's because it's a Zura/Matsu moment.

**Kaatsrua: **Zura/Matsu ja nai, Katsu… (gets hit by a kunai and knocked him out)

**Tsukkichi: **As I was saying, it wouldn't be a Zura/Matsu moment if your white ass will interfere. Got that? Now , onto the next question? Yes, Kyuubei – chan.

**Kyuubei: **Sensei, why is it that every pet seem to hate Gin - san and treats him as a toilet where they could shit or piss on?

**Kagura: **That's right Sensei. Even Sadaharu hated Gin – san at first. He always bite him on the head.

**Tsukkuichi: **That's a good question. I guess they could sense that he just hates pets since he doesn't like any responsibilities and knows that he would just be irritated by their presence… Okay, last question for the period. I'm dismissing class today because I have a meeting to attend to… Yes Toushi.

**Toushi: **Sensei, why are you smoking inside the class? It's prohibited for anyone to smoke inside right?

**Tsukkuchi: **Oh, I'm not smoking. This is just a lollipop that is lollilollilollied that's why it smokes on the stick.

**Sougo: **So is that the same thing that Ginpachi – Sensei has? Did he gave that to you Sensei?"

Class reacted and started teasing their Sensei

**Tsukkichi: **Uhm… I… uhm… bought it… at the cand…

**Sogou: **And by meeting do you mean going to Senesi's house and taking care of him and afterwards have some puf… (gets hit by a barrage of kunais)

Class became silent as Tsukkuichi's face turned vermillion.

**Tsukkuichi: **Class… Dis… missed…

**Sogou: **Rate… and… re…view… (faints)

* * *

**A/N:** Whew that was a really long chapter. Again Goumen if the chapter lacks the Oki Kagu scenes that I've promised. But I swear there will be on the next chapter. I guarantee it… I swear…


	4. An Investigation Starts With A Clue

**Chapter 4: An Investigation Always Starts with a Clue  
**

* * *

It was just before ten in the morning when the Yorozuya trio have returned back home at Yorozuya Gin – chan. Gintoki was longing for a rest inside after the long walk from Yoshiwara. Their travel time could've been shortened if Gintoki brought his scooter along but since it can only hold two people at the same time and Sadaharu was left at home, Kagura insisted they should just walk so that it would be fair for her.

Upon unlocking the lock on the fusuma, the trio or more specifically Gintoki was greeted by a huge white dog, biting him in the head.

"Hello Sadaharu. Did you miss us – aru?" asked Kagura as she pets the giant dog's head while he continued to clamp his jaws on Gintoki's head.

"Kagura – chan, you better get Sadaharu off Gin – san's head. It's starting to bleed again."

With a hold of the Iower half of the Inugami, Kagura pulled Sadaharu off the samurai's head with ease.

"Oi, Kagura, I thought you've already got this mutt to stop biting my head?" asked Gintoki who was shaken up and bleeding from the giant dog's bite.

"I did… I just… uhm… well… I forgot to leave some food for him yesterday… I got excited about visiting Tsukki and the others that I kind of forgotten about Sadaharu's dinner."

Gintoki sighed with disbelief. How could she have forgotten her one and only responsibility in the house? If this keeps up, it's either Sadaharu would run away or eats Gintoki, himself for dinner.

"Kagura – chan, you shouldn't forget things like that. Pets are like your children when you're still not married. They need love, attention and other stuff." explained Shinpachi.

Feeling guilty of her negligence for her pet, the Yato girl held Sadaharu's face and apologize. She then carried him inside and filled his bowl with a mountainous amount of dog food. The two boys followed behind with Gintoki going right into his chair and placing his feet on top of the table while Shinpachi checked the house if it was still as clean as when they left it yesterday or if Sadahau had already left his mark all over the house. Luckily for him, none of that happened making his life a bit easy for now.

Seeing that his two companions could handle things around for a while, he decided to go home.

"Gin – san, I'm going home for now. I forgot to tell to Anue – ue about our trip at Yoshiwara. She's probably worried about me by now. I'll be back later before dinner."

With that, the teenage boy left the house. Minutes later after Shinpachi left the house, a panel of the ceiling in the living room slid open. Without any warning, a purple haired woman threw her entire body on Gintoki, knocking their selves down on the tatami.

"Gin – san, where were you yesterday huh? I was waiting for you to come home all night for our usual SM play." said the female assailant as she cling her arms around the permed samurai's neck.

Hearing a familiar, irritating voice, Gintoki realized that it was his personal stalker, Ayame Sarutobi or Sacchan for short.

"WHA… WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING IN MY HOUSE AND HOW DID YOU GET INSIDE?" yelled the permed samurai, trying to loosen her grip on his neck.

"That's a secret Gin – san. But if you really want to know, you have to slap me really hard in my ass in your bedroom and massage my breas…"

Not allowing the kunoichi finish her sentence, Gintoki carried her by her clothes, slid the fusuma open and sent her crashing down to the ground. By the looks of it, Sarutobi seems to enjoy the ride. After all, she's a certified masochist and she always loves it when Gintoki starts being sadistic towards her.

"Thanks for the ride Gin – san. I'll come back later for more. I'll expect that you will bring you're A – game alright?"

"BAKA! WHAT MAKES YOU THINK THAT I'LL LET YOU COME INSIDE HERE AGAIN? GET LOST! I'LL MAKE SURE YOU NEVER GET IN ANY PARTS OF MY HOUSE AGAIN!"

Little did he know, Sacchan has a lot of ways of infiltrating his fortress. Giving a last wave of her hand to her long time crush, Sacchan went on her way.

With his bitch of a stalker finally out of the way, Gintoki sat down on the sofa and turned on the tv. Fortunately for him, the local weather report was on, along with his all time rush, Ketsuno Ana, giving her prediction of today's weather. Upon seeing the idol of his dreams, the permed samurai quickly came closer to the screen to get a better view of the weather reporter since the screen was a bit small. He wasn't even listening to the report. He just wanted to see her.

Unbeknownst to him, Kagura had Sadaharu in a leash, preparing to go outside for a walk.

"Oi Gin – chan, if you stay longer that close to the tv, you're gonna have eye problems – aru,"

"Yeah, yeah I got that Kagura, now will you stay quiet for a while. I'm listening to the weather report."

The Yato just sighed in disbelief knowing well that Gintoki is just fantasizing all over Ketsuno Ana once again like he always does whenever she is on.

"You're so hopeless Gin – san. Anyway, I'm walking Sadaharu at the park. I'll be back later."

"Okay, bye."

With that, the two Amantos left the house. A couple of minutes later, the show has finally ended and Gintoki turned off the tv and lied back down on the sofa.

"Now what? I've got nothing to do today since there are no customers yet and I don't think anyone will come anytime soon. Ahhh… This is so boring… Being bored is such a pain…" said the samurai to himself.

Suddenly, he remembered that they just got paid by Hinowa handsomely. Then, he thought of going to a pachinko parlour to try his luck. He gave a mental note to himself to only gamble a quarter of his money so that he won't get broke like Tsunade **(Hokage from Naruto)** does whenever her luck is down. Besides, it's just for a while until Kagura and Shinpachi gets back. Deciding to go with his plan, Gintoki went out and headed for a pachinko parlour.

* * *

Given a lead with the head of the entire smuggling operation, Tsukuyo, together with her second in command, Saya, proceeded where the arrested member of the gang was being held. After a while of skipping through rooftops and posts, the two kunoichi, had encountered a group of Hyakka members, surrounding a tied up, middle aged – man. When they arrived at the scene, the former courtesans, made way and greeted their Kashira and their second in command.

Saya explained the situation to Tsukuyo. They found the man, attempting to go to the surface with a truckload of cannon shells thanks to the suspect's neighbour who reported to them about his suspicious activities during midnight. Curious on what the man knows, Tsukuyo decided to approach the man as she puffs out a smoke in her kiresu.

"You, tell me, who are you working for?"

"I told you before; I work for the Deaf Man."

"There are a lot of deaf men here in Yoshiwara. You better give us somethin' specific."

"Heh, why should I? I refuse, you kill me. I tell you, the Deaf Man kills me. So whatever happens I'm dead anyway."

The man was being difficult to talk to making Saya loose her temper. Irritated by the man's uncooperativeness, the teenage kunoichi **(about Sougo's age)** pointed a kunai at the man's neck.

"Listen to me ya' low life. Either you could tell us the information we need and we might let you live or remain silent and you will see kunais rainin' down on yer' body. It would be my pleasure to leave your corpse along the way to send a message to your friends."

Hearing the threatening words of the brunette, pony tail haired kunoichi, the man cowered in fear, shaking throughout his body down to his boots. He could feel the pointed object getting deeper on his neck, with his skin's elasticity reaching its breaking point. But before a single drop of blood could spill from his neck, the Hyakka Kashira held the teenager's wrist, preventing her from causing any further injuries to the man.

"Saya, that's enough. If you kill him now, we won't have any leads to their head and it might take us another month to find another one."

"But Kashira…"

"I said ENOUGH!"

Complying with her superior's orders, Saya unwillingly removed her kunai from the suspect's neck and stepped back. Taking matters back to her hands, Tsukuyo decided to make a proposal to the man.

"Here's what's goin' to happen. If you give us the information that we want, I can guarantee you that the Hyakka will escort you out of Yoshiwara and we promise to never bother you again. Consider this as a punishment of exile for the crime that you have committed. So what do you say to that?"

The man was hesitant at first. He was afraid of what might happen to them if he crossed his boss. However, he was also afraid on what the vigilante group would do to him right on that moment although, if he cooperates with them, he is offered solitude. After quite some time to think about things, the man had reached to a decision.

"Do you swear that I'll get out of this district safely?"

"Hai, you have my word on that."

"Very well…" The man took a pause for a while. Shortly after, he began his story. "We saw him only once. That was the first time that every one of us gathered. He has spiky blue hair. He wears a pair of blue green tinted sunglasses. He also carries a distinctive stringed instrument on his back and finally, he wears a Yin – Yang designed headphones, covering his ears. I think that the music playing in it is really loud making it hard to listen to the people talking to him. That's why we call him "Deaf Man"

Given the description by the man, Tsukuyo couldn't see a picture of the "Deaf Man" in her mind. Maybe he should've been called 'Music Man' or 'Rock Star Man'. Nevertheless, she was sure that she hasn't seen anybody fitting the description around Yoshiwara during her patrols at all times.

"Could you give us some information on how you operate your procedures and how are you able to escape our patrols?" asked Saya, who was trying to help their Kashira in extracting as much information they needed as possible.

"Hai, like what I've said before, the 'Deaf Man' runs this show. We don't know how, but he was able to have a 3d model of the entire district placed in a hologram projector thingy and it is pin pointed the exact routes and spots where all you girls will be running around. About our procedures though, we work by shifts. First, during midnight, we would transport all the shipments form the port here with containers having no information from the sender since its illegal and is being sent to someone named Jiyacult **(Parody of Yakult, w/c is confirmed to be Takasugi's food addiction)**.I'm sensing this is addressed to the 'Deaf Man'. When everything is loaded, the first two trucks would depart for the elevators during the day at around 9:00 am with a couple of minutes separating the two so that it wouldn't look so obvious. After we reached the elevators, we would wait first on the platforms and then, we would signal the other two to go via text and the process will repeat until the every truck has left. Once we're on the surface, we would drive towards a warehouse in Edo where more trucks are waiting. At the entrance of the warehouse, we will be greeted by a group of armed Amantos and ex Joui members as we transfer everything in it. After everything is loaded up, the Amantos would pay us for our work and quickly force us out of the warehouse. We then return to Yoshiwara and the whole process repeats again after the next shift finishes their work and once one of our guys gets the message from the 'Deaf Man' that the shipment had already arrived and he would message us all afterwards in our phones."

The man's explanation seem cloudy to Tsukuyo. There are a lot of problems with his story. First was, why would they just place the shipments in a warehouse if the Amantos and the ex Joui members would just move it themselves? Second is, why would their head just text them what to do and not show up at all. Third and the most important thing is, how in the world did they manage to get a blue print of the entire district with their route highlighted?

But before the Shinigami Tayou could even ask a single question, the man spoke up.

"I know, you're wondering why is it that this is the only thing that I could tell you. Am I right? Honestly speaking, I think that the less we know about this entire operation, the better it is."

"But what about the weapons that we had confiscated from your other comrades, where did they come from and what are they for?" asked Saya.

"The Amantos would give us the small fire arms that are included in the shipment after they sort things out. They say that they have no use for petty things like those which is weird since they sell a lot in the black market which some of us do. But the others keep it for themselves and use it whenever they want."

"Alright that's enough" said Tsukuyo. "I think we already heard enough. Will somebody remove this man from his bonds?"

Hearing their Kashira's orders, one member of the Hyakka cut the rope that was binding the man. Once freed, the man stood, stretching his hands to get the blood flowing back properly on them.

"Now that you got me to speak, I expect that you honour your part of the bargain."

"Of course, the Hyakka will escort you out of Yoshiwara safely for your own protection and we will never bother you again… But if we ever see you again here, then we will consider you as a criminal of the district and hunt you down. Is that understood?"

"Hai, I always wanted to get out of this place anyway."

With everything settled, the man was about to leave when Saya threw a kunai in front of him, stopping him from his tracks.

"What the…"

"Hold on a sec." halted the kunoichi. "Before you leave, how 'bout showin' us how and when you guys begin your little party huh?"

"Didn't you get what I said a while ago? Everyone knows where you hide and run so you'll be easily spotted no matter what." explained the man

"I know what you've said. But we won't get caught if you tell us where to go won't we? Besides, I'm sure everything has a blind spot even a well – organized layout of Yoshiwara."

This made the man think. This girl sure is hard headed, irritating but determined to get what she wants. Seeing that he cannot stall the kunoihi for long because of her short temper, the criminal turned asset quickly agreed with Saya.

"Alright, I'll meet you guys again tonight before the next shift begins at this place. Right now, I have to finish this truck load of weapons first. I'm already late for quite some minutes now."

"Tch… Fine… But this is your last shipment alright? Remember you're under the watchful eyes of the Hyakka. If you try and double cross us, we'll kill you instantly…"

"Yeah, yeah… killing me… I've heard that a million times already today. Anyway, I'll see you guys later."

With that, the man hopped back to his truck and drove away. Delighted with how her subordinate was able to handle the situation, Tsukuyo gave her a pat on the back for a job well done.

"I'm impressed with your way of interrogatin' people Saya."

"Arigatou, but it was nothin'. I was just doin' my job Kashira."

"Just a few reminders, next time, try controllin' your temper. We're gonna be in big trouble if we're faced in a more delicate situation than this." explained the Shinigmi Tayou as she puffs out another smoke in her pipe.

"What do you mean by that?"

"I mean maybe next time, try and analyse the situation like for example because of your continuous questionin', don't you think that his comrades would start becomin' suspicious why the other truck has been late for quite some time now?"

Listening to the explanation of her superior, Saya quickly realized her mistake. Embarrassed with what she had done, the young woman turned around, unable to face her Kashira.

"Sou… Soumimasen Kashira. I was just tryin' to be like ya'…"

"You will be someday… But as of this moment, you still have a long way to go kid."

Hearing her superior's words enlightened the young kunoichi to try harder the next time around. With their Kashira's order, the Hyakka resumed with their patrolling of Yoshiwara with the exemption of the teenage kunoichi who decided to stay behind.

"Saya, what are you still doin' here? Better get goin' we still have a lot of work to do." stated Tsukuyo.

"Actually, I wanted to greet you a belated Happy Birthday Kashira."

She then pulled out a box from inside her kimono, wrapped in purple sheets with a white ribbon on top of it. Of course, Tsukuyo was surprised that someone from the Hyakka knew about her birthday since she hasn't actually told anyone from the Hykka about it ever since she joined the group or even when she became the leader because she keeps forgetting about it herself.

Afeter she uwrapped the box, she found an elegant kiresu. By he looks of it, she thought that it probably cost a lot.

"Sa… Saya… I don't know what to say… Arigatou… But you shouldn't have… The greeting alone was more than enough… Besides, this must've cost you a lot."

"Nah, it was nothin' I just saved a lot of money these past few months anyway. Besides, I couldn't think of another gift to give." explained the young kunoichi.

"By, the way, how did you knew that it was my birthday yesterday Saya?"

"I kind of overheard ya' last night talkin' with Sakata – sama at the engawa of Hino – ya while I was patrolling the streets."

Tsukuyo was indeed caught off guard by this sudden revelation as her face started to flush. She thought that Hinowa was the only one that saw what happened last night. Unfortunately, there was another one. It didn't crossed her mind that one of the Hyakka would actually pass through the house and would even somehow hear her conversation with Gintoki since everyone was busy with the case that they were trying to solve.

Her pondering was then interrupted when Saya spoke up. "So did Sakata – sama gave you a really good 'present' last night Kashira?" teased the teenage girl as she nudged her elbow on Tsukuyo's side while giving her a wink.

"NO NO NO, nothing of that happened last night. We just bumped with each other last night since they spent the night over at our house and got talkin'."

"WHAT!? He spent the night with you… and on your birthday? Oh my, so does that mean he's going to be the Danna of the Hyakka now?"

"BA… BAKA!? IT'S NOT LIKE THAT. They only spent the night in the house since they celebrated my birthday together with me, Hinowa and Seita and it was already too late for them to go back to the surface and why would you even try and imagine me with that permed bastard or even be with a guy huh? I told you a million times before…"

"You already abandoned you femininity… blah … blah… blah…" interrupted Saya. "But there's no denying that you're still a woman Kashira. And however how much you deny it, it will always show. Besides, just look at your wrist, you're still wearing that bracelet that Sakata – sama gave you."

Tsukuyo was once again taken aback by the keen observation of Saya. How could've she known about that if she was just passing by? Could it be that…

"We… were you spyin' on me last night?"

"Uhm… Spyin' is actually a very strong word Kashira... I would say that… Uhm… it was like watching a late night tele novella… I kind of got amused with the scene so I… decided to stick around and see… what will happen next..." said the nervous young kunoichi.

After giving her honest confession to her Kashira, Saya was expecting that it would somehow ease Tsukuyo a bit and would somehow let her off the hook. But instead, she was greeted by a face of her Kashira that she hoped that she would never be on the receiving end of. Facing the killer face of Tsukuyo, Saya couldn't help but shake in fear. The last thing that was heard from the teenager was a loud shriek of pain from the beating that she received.

* * *

It was past eleven when Kagura and Sadaharu reached the park. While they were walking towards the playground, where they usually hangout, the Yato girl saw someone lying down the bench. As they get closer to the person, the image of the person becomes more and more familiar to her starting off with that distinctive black uniform and that unique bazooka at the side. But when she saw that freaky sleeping mask, she found out that the person turned out to be non other than her arch nemesis, Sougo Okita.

"Oi Sadist," she called out but the teenage boy didn't budge. She called out again but still nothing happened. Beginning to lose her temper, Kagura cuffed her hands, took in a deep breath and shouted.

"OOII, SAADDIISSTT!"

Hearing a disturbing noise coming out of nowhere, Sougo woke up from his slumber. Curious on who was making all the ruckus, the Shinsengumi 1st division captain took of his eye mask to find out who it was and probably arrest him on the spot with a charge of public disturbance. But once he took them off, he was greeted by the image of a giant white dog and a young girl in a Chinese attire.

"Oi China, did you made all that noise?"

"So what if I made that - aru? What are you gonna do about it?"

Suddenly, Kagura saw Sougo present a piece of paper in front of her. It was a ticket, fining her for public disturbance for an amount of two thousand yen plus tax. Kagura's eyes shot wide open when she saw the amount.

"WHAT'S THE MEANING OF THIS – ARU!?"

"I'm arresting you for disturbance of the public."

"DISTURBING THE PUBLIC MY ASS! YOU JUST WANT SOME CASH YOU DAMN TAX COLLECTOR!"

"I'm a member of the Shinsengumi. I don't let my emotions affect the actions I make. I'm just enforcing the law here."

Annoyed at what her sadistic rival had done, the Yato girl threatened to tear the piece of paper in half. But then, the teenage boy grabbed her attention, stopping her on her tracks.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you China. If you rip that ticket without paying it first, your fee would double which will be beneficial since I'll get a cut from that payment. Anyway, don't mind what I said earlier, rip that up. Be my guest."

Kagura thought for a while after being provoked. Maybe he's just bluffing. Plus, he doesn't have any evidence that could tell that she did it. Heeding no attention to his threats, Kagura proceeded to her work. Suddenly a flash of light had momentarily stunned her. The next thing she saw, Sougo was putting his phone back to his pocket. At that moment, she realized that he had taken a picture of her, trying to rip her ticket apart.

"OI, DELETE THAT PICTURE – ARU!" yelled Kagura.

"No way China, this is incriminating evidence. Plus let's just say this is a payment for making me wait for nothing yesterday."

"What do you mean making you wait? I don't remember I had an obligation on meeting you yesterday Sadist."

" Uh, yes you do. Didn't we had a deal that we would have a game every week on that day and whoever gets to win three games, will have a recording of the loser admitting to the winner that he/she is forever better to everything compared to the loser? By my count we were dead even on the last game. And since you didn't show up yesterday, that makes me the winner by default. Now, get down on your knees and say it on my phone."

"THAT'S NOT FAIR – ARU! I WAS AT YOSHIWARA YESTERDAY!" defended Kagura.

"Yoshiwara? What are you doing in that sort of place? Are you trying to be a courtesan? But based from your body, I don't think you will pass China." commented Sougo who was observing Kagura from top to bottom.

Insulted by the continuous teasing especially when it comes to her body, Kagura launched a pre-emptive strike on the boy. Knowing how short tempered his rival was, Sougo dodged the enraged Yato's punch with ease and the kick after that. He kept dodging her attacks until Kagura ran out of air. While the Yato girl was catching her breath, she thought of a proposition to Sougo.

"Oi Sadist, why don't we have our last game here and now? If I win, you let me off the hook. If you win, I'll pay your damn fee and say that you are better than me."

"How about if you pay the fee in the way that I want?"

"Tch… fine… What will be the game then?"

Placing his thumb and finger on his chin, the teenage boy thought of a game that they can settle their dispute once and for all.

"Since I didn't bring any stuff with me today, how about we go simple and have a staring game? First to blink loses."

"Are you serious? A staring game? No one has ever beaten me in a staring game – aru."

"We'll see China, we'll see."

While Sadaharu sat next to a tree to rest, the two rivals sat on a bench next to it and prepared their selves for their final contest. With their preparations already completed and having an agreement that they're both ready, the competition began.

At the first fifteen minutes of the contest, everything was easy for the two. Both of them, staring at each other with unblinking eyes with blue meeting with redish brown.

"Give up China, I know you already want to blink." said Sougo, breaking the silence between them.

"Like that's going to happen Sadist."

Another 10 minutes had passed and still no one has flinched. Thinking that this was taking too long and was way too easy and boring, the two had agreed to pause for a while to blink and to agree upon a new rule. One player at a time can distract the other in whatever way they can without using any direct physical violence. If the player does not blink, then it will be the other player's turn to distract the other. The two decided to play janken **(rock, paper, scissors)** to decide who will strike first. On their first attempt, they ended up with a draw, with both of them using rock. Second and third attempts were still a draw. Both used paper and rock again respectively. On their fourth attempt, Kagura used scissors and Sougo used paper.

"Yatta, I get to draw first blood - aru. Prepare yourself Sadist."

"Oh, I'm shaking already…" mocked the Shinsengumi officer.

Five minutes after they resumed their little game, Kagura made her move. She took her parasol and opened it in front of Sougo, hoping that it would somehow spook him enough to make him blink. But it failed.

"Damn it." murmured the Yato to herself

"It will take more than that to beat me China."

Next was Sougo's turn. He took out his phone once again and took a picture of Kagura, using the flash to somehow blind her. But she didn't blink as well. For Kagura's next attempt, she took in a deep breath and spat on the boy's face. His eye was about to twitch in disgust, but forced himself not to.

After another failed attempt by the Yato, Sougo pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket to wipe away the saliva in his face without covering his eyes so that Kagura can't accuse him of cheating. Since his rival made things to be a bit disgusting, he decided to go with it as well. But instead of spitting, he removed his shoe, followed by his sock and placed his sock near Kagura's nose.

From the moment she got a whiff of the scent, she felt sick to her stomach like she wanted to hurl. The sock smelled so foul that it almost smelled worse than the Shogun during the Vacation Arc. Her eyes were beginning to water but, she held her breath for a while just long enough for her

"HOW LONG HAS THAT THING BEEN IN YOU FOOT – ARU?"

"Just this morning."

"WHY DOES IT SMELLS LIKE A SEWER!?"

"Oh yeah, I stepped on Hijikata – san's mayonnaise a while ago. Maybe that's why it smells like that."

"WHY DIDN'T YOU JUST CHANGE THEM – ARU?"

"Because, I haven't done my laundry yet and I don't have an extra pair. I can't change into my geta **(Japanese sandals)** as well since we're expected to be in uniform at all times."

Hearing the unbelievable explanation of her opponent, Kagura let it slide since it wasn't that important. Going back to the matter at hand, she was thinking of a way on how to upgrade her plans this time. At first, she was thinking of flicking him on the head with her finger, but the rule was direct physical violence is prohibited. Suddenly, something caught her eye. It was Sadaharu. A plan then instantaneously hatched on her mind.

'_Although direct physical violence is not allowed, nothing about accidents or incidental events was mentioned.'_

She then moved her hand behind her and gave a hand signal to Sadaharu. Upon seeing his master's sign, he slowly sneaked behind Sougo. Once he was in place, he clamped his teeth down on the boy's head. Sougo flinched from the initial shock of the bite. Although, he was in pain, he still forced himself not to blink. Seconds later, blood began pouring down his head and the boy started to weaken with his eyelids threatening to fall.

"Oi China, what's the meaning of this? Isn't this against the rules?" asked Sougo.

"Nope, incidents don't count. Maybe Sadaharu acted on his own and that by himself. Besides, even if I did that, it's not direct right?" explained Kagura with a sadistic grin on her face, knowing that anytime now, Sougo's eyelids has to fall from the blood loss and the pain that he was enduring.

Suddenly, the Shinsengumi officer took out something from his pocket. It was a Shinsengumi sausage that he was supposed to have for lunch. He raised it to the giant dog's nostrils to let him sniff it. Once he got a whiff of the tasty treat, he let go of his grip on the boy's head and focused his attention on the sausage.

"Sadaharu, what are you doing – aru? Get back there and bite that sadist's head." ordered Kagura but the Inugami ignored it.

Having the full attention of the dog, Sougo threw the sausage to a couple of meters away from them. Wanting to have the tasty treat, Sadaharu followed it, leaving the two and more importantly his master behind.

"Nice trick you did there China. You almost got me. But now it's my turn. If indirect violence was you trump card, then psychological violence is mine." threatened the teenage boy making Kagura nervous on what he was about to do.

Slowly, Sougo reached for the back of her neck, holding it softly. Kagura started to sweat when she felt his hand, not knowing on what he was planning to do next.

"Oi Sadist… what are you gonna do? Choke me? If that's what you're about to do then you're gonna be disqualified."

"Don't worry, I won't choke you. I told you, my trump card is psychological violence."

He then slowly crept closer to her, lessening the distance that separates the two of them. The closer he gets to her the more nervous Kagura becomes. Before she knew it, their faces were almost touching each other, making her face turn pink. Finally, Sougo leaned back a few inches away, opened his mouth a bit, just enough to separate his lips and moved forward again towards his rival, aiming for her's.

Horrified on what might happen next, if it is what she was thinking, Kagura leaned her face away from him, closing her eyes in the process and letting out a loud shriek. Once he saw what he was expecting to see, the sadistic boy let go of her neck and moved away. Although, he already distanced himself away from her, Kagura's eyes were still closed.

"Oi China," he called. "Open your eyes already. I already won."

His voice seemed soft for someone who is just inches from her. Curious, the Yato girl opened her eyes and was supposed to see her rival standing about a couple of feet away from her, wiping the blood from his head with his handkerchief.

"Wha… WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT ABOUT – ARU?" demanded Kagura.

"A psychological beat down. I figured, I have to go to drastic measures to make you blink since all my other attempts failed and I have nothing with me to make an indirect physical assault so I went with my ace and that is, to make you think I was about to kiss you. Nice trick isn't it? "

"NICE TRICK MY ASS! I'M NOT ADMITTING DEFEAT AND I'M NOT GONNA CONFESS ANYTHING TO A STUPID RECORDER ABOUT SOMEONE STUPID BEING BETTER THAN ME!"

"Okay, if that's what you want then you can just pay the ticket that I gave you. Oh and that's doubled since I have evidence that you were trying to rip it. All in all, that's 5000 yen."

"OI, THAT's MORE THAN THE RIGHT AMMOUNT, YOU DAMN TAX COLLECTOR!"

"Hmm… disrespecting a police officer, additiona…"

"Okay fine!" interrupted Kagura, afraid of another raise in her fine.

Reaching into her purse, she pulled out the money that she had from Hinowa's reward and unwillingly gave most of it to Sougo.

"Thanks for the cash China. Maybe we could do this another time. Maybe a year after this I can have enough money to hire someone to assassinate Hijikata – san."

The Yato in turn did not say a single word but instead, gave out a pout to him.

"Whatever China. Anyway, it's about time for me to get back to the station. Thanks again for the cash and see you around." said the Shinsengumi officer as he walks off.

"F*CK YOU SADIST! I HOPE SOMEONE ROBS YOU, STABS YOU AND KILLS YOU ALONG THE WAY." yelled an angered Kagura.

Sougo only waved his hand back to her as a reply, ignoring the curse that she had said. Soon after the boy departed, Sadaharu returned back to Kagura with the sausage wrapper hanging on his mouth. Still upset about the lost, Kagura unleashed her anger on her pet.

"IF IT WASN'T FOR YOUR STOMACH, I WOULD'VE WON THAT CONTEST. SO THANKS FOR NOTHING SADAHARU!"

Hearing his master's harsh words, Sadaharu couldn't help but feel guilty about what happened. He let his owner down when she needed him the most. He was expecting for a beating from her after that but then, she patted him on the back as she climbed up on him, resting her head on the back of his.

"Let's just go back home. All that just made me hungry."

Obeying his master' command, Sadaharu walked back home to Yorozuya – Gin – chan. On their way home, Kagura kept going back on that moment when Sougo was about to kiss her. It was probably one of the most horrifying experiences that she ever had. At least that's what she thinks. It got stuck on her mind for some reason and she badly wanted to get it out of her. She tried to shake that moment aside by the thought of the food that she will have later with the money that she has left or the food that Shinpachi will make for them for dinner and somehow, it kind of took her mind off that moment… for now…

* * *

It was one o' clock when Gintoki went out of the pachinko parlour. Just like usual, he lost again. But fortunately for him, he only lost one thousand yen, since he kept reminding himself not to spend all of his money so that he will still have some left. While he was walking back home, his stomach grumbled. Because of his time in the mini – casino, he didn't realized what time it was and forgot to eat lunch.

Since Gintoki wanted to save money, he decided to go to Hokuto Shinken since the food is cheap there but still delectable. Plus, he knows the owner so he can probably get a discount. Hopping on his trusted silver scooter, Gintoki headed for the ramen shop.

A couple of minutes later, Gintoki arrived at the shop. Once he entered it, he was greeted by Ikumatsu.

"Konnichiwa Gin – san. It's been a while since you last visited. How are you doing?"

"Heh , same old, same old. How about you?"

"Oh you know the usual. Anyway, what will you have today?"

"I'll have a bowl of pork ramen today and a cup of oolong tea."

"Okay, coming right up."

Ikumatsu placed the pre made noodles at the pot of boiling water to cook it. While she waits for it, the ramen cook filled a bowl with hot prok broth and topped it off with cuts of pork and freshly cut vegetables. After the bowl was assembled, she lifted the noodles from the pot with a strainer, drained all the water from it and combined it with the soup. Finally the pork ramen was done.

"Here you go Gin – san. Enjoy your meal while I get your oolong at the back."

As Ikumatsu went to get the alcoholic beverage, Gintoki started to eat his ramen.

"Wow, these noodles sure are tasty. I wonder what Ikumatsu had done with them?" asked the permed samurai.

Unbeknownst to him, someone behind him was walking towards his direction.

"Konnichiwa… could I interest you with some Ebichahan **(shrimp fried rice)**?" asked by a strange male.

"Will you look at this, Ikumatsu has finally hired a waiter for her shop. Tell me are you a part time guy who's trying to earn a little?" asked Gintoki as he continues to eat his meal, not looking to the direction of the man.

"Part time guy Ja nai… Katsura da…"

Upon the mention of the name, Gintoki spat out the soup that he had been drinking in disbelief right into Katsura's face.

"ZURA!? WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE? And why is your head covered in bandages?"

"Elizabeth and I are working for Ikumatsu – dono to pay her back for taking care of us this morning."

"Took care of you this morning?" What do you mean by that? And where is that pet of yours anyway?"

"He's at the back, making the noodles for the ramen."

When Gintoki found out that it was Elizabeth who made the noodles, his body suddenly froze in disbelief, causing him to drop his chopsticks on the table. He then stepped outside the shop and went immediately to the alleyway were the dumpster was located. Once he was there, he started vomiting on the dumpster, disgusted that he ate something that the Renho had made. Once he was done with his business, he returned back to the shop.

"Are alright Gintoki? You don't look so good. Would you like a bite of my special Ebichahan to help ease your tummy?" asked the long haired samurai, showing Gintoki his dish.

Upon setting his sights on the dish, Gintoki's stomach started acting up again and so, he went out the shop and vomited on the dumpster again, disgusted even just by the sight of Katsura's meal which was probably fortunate for him since the last time somebody ate Katsura's shrimp fried rice, it caused them food poisoning and they never set foot on the shop again **(episode 39)**.

* * *

Saya and Tsukuyo had just arrived on Kabukichou. The two decided to gather up more information on the 'Deaf Man' in the surface before they meet up with their asset later in the afternoon while the rest of the Hyakka patrols Yoshiwara. They agreed to search on the said district, since Tsukuyo has already familiarized herself with the area.

"You know, maybe we should've asked the man if he had a picture of his boss so that it would've been easier to ask people about him, don't you think?" asked Tsukuyo.

"Do you mean something like this Kashira?"

Saya then showed her some really well sketched pictures of the said man.

"W… wait, how were ya' able to do that and how come I don't know that you can draw this good?"

"While we were on the way… It's kind of a hobby really… Besides, you already know who were the bad guys were back then didn't ya? So my sketchin' skills were probably useless during that time.

"But still, you could've informed me about it."

"Well, I'm informing ya now."

"THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT!"

"So you don't want me to inform ya' that I'm good at drawing?"

"URUSAI!"

Finally settling that argument, the two began their work but suddenly, Saya's stomach began to grumble. She ignored it at first but then, it grumbled for a second time. This didn't pass through the Shinigami Tayou's eyes. When she came to ask her about it, it turned out that the girl hasn't eaten anything since last night because she woke up early to pick up her Kashira's present and resume her duty. Seeing that having a break and for lunch won't do any harm to them, Tsukuyo decided that they should eat first.

As they were walking along the streets of Kabukichou, the two kunoichis saw a certain ramen store. Saya asked Tsukuyo what a ramen is since she hasn't had one before because it is not a common food served in Yoshiwara. Tsukuyo explained that she too hasn't had one before but she knows that it is some kind of noodles served in a bowl of soup. Curious on what it tastes like, they agreed on eating there.

But before they could reach the store, Tsukuyo heard a familiar, irritating voice calling her name. Turning her attention to where she heard the voice, she found a woman in purple long hair, wearing a fitted red outfit and wearing a pair of glasses. It was Sacchan.

"It's been a while since I see your face roaming around in here Tsukki. What are you doing up here huh? Are you going to spy on Gin – chan like me in his house? Well I've got news for you. You can't. There's only one spot for his guardian angel and that spot is already mine."

"Boy, she sure likes to hear her own voice doesn't she Kashira?" whispered the youngest kunoichi in the group which was heard by Sacchan.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY ABOUT ME YOU LITTLE BRAT?"

"I SAID YOU WERE A NOISY BITCH AND WHO ARE YOU CALLING A BRAT HUH?"

The next thing Tsukuyo knew the two women were already touching their faces against one another. With tensions growing greater by the second, she decided to intervene.

"Oi oi, break it up you two. I already have enough problems and I don't plan on addin' you two." said the Shinigami Tayou as she separate the two apart.

"Saya, why don't you go to the store and order us somethin' to eat while I talk with Sacchan over here?"

"Bu… but Kashira?"

"THAT'S AN ORDER!"

"Tch… fine…"

Obeying her superior's orders, Saya walked to the ramen shop, leaving the two older women to talk.

"So who's that kid huh? She's really has the attitude you know?"

"That's my second in command and my apprentice. Her name is Saya and she was just tellin' the truth."

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN SHE'S JUST TELLING THE TRUTH?"

Tsukuyo took a pause first before she gave her reply to puff out a smoke in her new kiresu.

"I meant that you were really very talkative a while ago and she was just being frank with what she was seein'."

She then noticed Sacchan's outfit. It wasn't the normal white kunoichi uniform that she was used on seeing on her. Curious on what the thing was about it, she decided to ask her 'friend' about it.

"By the way, what is up with that outfit of yers? Are you workin' as a masochistic prostitute?"

"OF COURSE NOT!" snarled the purple haired kunoichi. "Don't compare me to your kind who uses your bodies just to pleasure customers for money. I work on a kunoichi café. It's like a maid café only with kunoichis. By the way, you still haven't answered my question a while ago. What exactly are you doing here Tsukki?"

Tsukuyo took another puff at her kiresu which started to annoy Sacchan. Since the purple haired kunoichi might not understand what their business was in Kabukichou was about, Tsukuyo decided to just make up a story about being interested in tasting ramen since she never had one before after Gintoki told her how good it was.

* * *

Gintoki's stomach has finally settled. Although he was still feeling sick from what he had just ate. Pitying his old friend, Katsura patted his back to make feel better. A few seconds later, Ikumatsu came back with Gintoki's kettle of oolong tea only to find him looking sick.

"Wha… what happened here?"

"Gintoki got sick from the noodles and when I offered him my shrimp fried rice." explained the long haired samurai.

"Why is that? Elizabeth – san's noodles were great isn't he?"

"That was the problem. When Gintoki found out that Elizabeth made the noodles, he became ill."

"Well, we can't leave him like this. I'll just make a new batch of noodles for Gin – san then."

"But Ikumatsu – dono, you're already tired. Allow me to do it."

But before Katsura could even stand up from his chair, Gintoki quickly grabbed his wrist, pulling him back down to his seat. Apparently, Gintoki doesn't want him to take any part of the cooking. Unable to do anything, the long haired samurai stayed and just pour the tea into two cups instead and drank from his quietly.

"Oi Zura," the permed samurai called breaking the silence in the store. "What actually happened with your head? I'm sure you didn't just had a simple accident even though you're carless did you?"

"Careless ja nai, Katsura da…" and with that, Katsura told him about everything that happened last night with him and Elizabeth and how he ended up in Hokuto Shinken.

Unknown to them, they were being watched by a teenage girl from the entrance of the shop. Saya was surprised to see the permed samurai on the shop, moreover with a long haired woman who appears to be in a white shirt, violet vest and black pants. At first glance she thought that Gintoki was hitting on the waitress. But as she examines things, it seems as though, they were having a very intimate conversation. Shocked what she saw, the young woman rushed out of the store to report to her Kashira.

* * *

Hearing Tsukuyo's story, Sacchan couldn't help but laugh at her, criticising the Yoshiwaran women again that they know nothing else except to flaunt their bodies at men. The Shinigami Tayou on the other hand just ignored her comment and puffed out another smoke in her kiresu that irritated the other kunoichi even more.

"WILL YOU STOP WITH THE SMOKE TSUKKI!?"

"What, you mean this?" asked Tsukuyo, blowing smoke, directly to Sacchan's face, making her cough.

"DAMN IT TSUKKI, DIDN'T YOU KNOW GIN – SAN DOESN'T LIKE SMOKERS?"

Suddenly, something rang out of nowhere. It was Sacchan's phone. It was her alarm, telling her that it was time for her shift.

"Woah, look at the time. I've got to go. Finally I get to breathe fresh air now. Anyway, a friendly reminder Tsukki, better lay off the smoke or Gin – san won't like you at all… On a better note, why don't you continue that so I can be the only kunoichi in Gin – san's life. Anyway, sayonara Tsukki."

"See ya' 'round and for the love of God, I DON'T LIKE GINTOKI!"

With that, Sacchan went on her way. Seconds later, Saya came running towards Tsukuyo. By the way she looked, it seems like there was something urgent that she wanted to tell her.

"What is it Saya?"

"Kashira… Sakata – sama…" said the teenager as she catches her breath. With the mention of his name, Tsukuyo started to get worried that something wrong happened to him.

"What about him? What happened?"

"I saw him in the shop… with another woman…"

At first, Tsukuyo didn't believe what her subordinate was talking about since he was the last person in mind that she would've thought of having an intimate conversation with a woman. But as Saya explained what she saw, her worries grew gdeeper and deeper. Saya could see that it hit her Kashira deeply, seeing her facial expression changed.

But then, Tsukuyo held her subordinate's hand and hurriedly went towards the shop, dragging Saya along with her. She was curious to see what kind of a woman caught the permed samurai fell into.

When the two entered the shop, Gintoki was still at the table talking to the alleged 'waitress' that Saya told her Kashira about.

_'So it was true…'_ said Tsukuyo to herself. _'Gintoki is in a date with another woman…"_

Suddenly, he spotted her, standing still on the entrance of the store. He waved his hand at her with a smile on his face.

"Oi Tsukuyo!" he called.

His companion also turned his head towards her. Upon having a clear view of his face to her, Tsukuyo identified Gintoki's 'date' to be a man. Having this new information, she glared at her subordinate with a menacing look signalling her that she will deal with the teenage girl later for making her worry that much for nothing. They then went to the men's table and sat with them.

"By the way, who's the kid? I didn't know that the Hyakka have a junior's division. Was she also a former courtesan?" asked Gintoki.

"This is Saya. She is my second in command and apprentice and no, she's not a courtesan. She's an orphan who was sold in Yoshiwara like me. I've been training her since I became the leader of the Hyakka." explained Tsukuyo.

"Please to meet you Danna." greeted the energetic youth.

"Wait, what? WHY ARE YOU CALLING HIM DANNA?"

"Isn't he the Danna around here and the Danna of the Yorozuya Kashira?"

"YOU DON'T WORK FOR HIM AND HE AIN'T THE DANNA OF KABUKICHOU GOT THAT?" reprimanded Tsukuyo.

"Oi oi, let her be Tsukki. After all, it should be thought to kids to respect those who are superi…"

Once again, his speech was interrupted when his forehead attracted another one of Tsukuyo's kunais, leaving him out cold.

"On behalf of my baka companion, summimasen, Tsukki – dono." stated Gintoki's companion.

"It's Tsukuyo and there's no need to apologize good sir. It's that moron's fault anyway. By the way, who are you?"

"Once again, summimasen, Tsukuyo – dono and my name is Katsura Koutaro."

His name sounded familiar to her. She knew that she had heard that name before. Suddenly, it hit her. Could that man be the 'Zura' that Gintoki was referring to her yesterday that he was talking to?

"Uhm… excuse me... but you wouldn't happen to be 'Zura', leader of the Jouishishi would you?"

"As a matter of fact, I am and Zura ja nai, Katsura da."

"Oh, summimasen. It's just that Gintoki referred you to me by that name when he spoke of you."

"I see, and I'm guessing that he was the one who started calling you 'Tsukki' as well."

"No… It was Kagura – chan who started calling me that. Don't get me wrong I like it when she calls me that, it's just that I don't feel comfortable when somebody else does that especially Gintoki."

"Oh, tell me about it…"

While the two were talking about their nickname annoyance, and Saya was checking on Gintoki if he had regained his consciousness already, Ikumatsu came back with Gintoki's freshly made pork ramen **(again)**. As she was about to go to Gintoki's table, she noticed that there were two female customers with them, whom she figured, had just arrived. One of them, who appears to be a teenager was slapping Gintoki to somehow, wake him up and one was talking to Katsura.

At first glance, she saw that the woman had a very beautiful face and a very attractive body. Altough she had a scar in her face, it doesn't matter. Her initial reaction towards her was she might be Katsura's girlfriend or someone that meant more to a friend to him sinc, no girl nor woman that elegant has ever eaten in her shop. But then it got her thinking. Why was she thinking stuff like that? Why would she care if there is something between them? Disregarding those useless thoughts, she proceeded to the table to place Gintoki's ramen and get the orders of the two new customers.

"Gin – san, here's your pork ramen. I hope this will satisfy you this time." said Ikumatsu, placing the hot bowl down. "And for the two ladies, what will you have?"

The two kunoichis looked at each other, to the bowl of ramen and back to themselves again. As if by telepathy, they just nod at each other and made their decision at the same time.

"WE'LL HAVE PORK RAMEN PLEASE!" said the two in chorus, which surprised the ramen chef.

"Wait, a… are you sure about that?"

The two looked at each other once more and again, said the same thing at the same time.

"HAI!"

Still confused and wierded out by the two, Ikumatsu returned back to the kitchen to get Elizabeth's newly kneed noodles. Later, she placed them again in the boiling pot and prepared the other ingredients while waiting for the noodles to cook. While she was chopping, Tsukuyo came over and sat at the counter.

"Uhm, excuse me…"

"Yest, what is it?"

"Can I… watch you while you are cooking? I just want to see how it's done… If that is okay with you…"

"Oh, it's okay I suppose"

"Thanks… I'm Tsukuyo by the way."

"Ikumatsu… Nice to meet you."

As Ikumatsu chops each vegetable and meat, Tsukuyo watches silently. Everything was quiet in the store since Gintoki was still out, Katsura was cleaning the dishes at the back, Elizabeth was still kneading the noodles and Saya was playing with her phone **(assuming that she's already earned enough money that she could afford one)**. That was until Ikumatsu spoke up to Tsukuyo softly, careful not to let Katsura hear it.

"Uhm… may I ask something?"

"Yes what is it?"

"How long have you known Gintoki and Katsura?"

"Hmm… I guess… I met Gintoki some time ago and I met Katsura – san 10 minutes ago."

"Oh I see, so you've just met Katsura?"

"Yeah. Gintoki just told me about him recently. Why ja' asked?"

"Oh nothing. I just assumed that you know them both since you and your friend were sitting with them."

But deep inside her, she was really thankful that they didn't actually know each other so the girlfriend theory was now scrapped. Although, why was she asking her to watch her cook ramen? Was she planning to try and copy her? Curious on what could be her motive, Ikumatsu decided to ask her about it.

"Uhm, may I ask why do you want to watch me cook?"

"To be honest, this is my first time to eat ramen since it's not somethin' that is commonly served in Yoshiwara." explained Tsukuyo.

"You're from Yoshiwara? So, that's why your accent sounds a bit strange. You're probably a courtesan aren't you?"

Tsukuyo shook her head in response. "That's for those women who can charm customers with their femininity. The scar on my face is a symbol of my abandonment of it. It's an oath that I made to myself to protect Yoshiwara." explained the Shinigami Tayou.

Ikumatsu was astounded on what she just heard. She didn't know that the woman in front of her was a part of the infamous vigilante group of the Red light District. Her pondering was then interrupted when her companion spoke up.

"How about you?" asked Tsukuyo. "How did you know those two?"

"Hmm… Gin – san and the Yorozuya have been regulars here for quite some time now and I ended up getting to know them. Katsura – san on the other hand, well… let's just say I met him under some circumstances some time ago.

"Leme' guess, you met him in an inappropriate time didn't ya'?"

"I guess we can put it that way. How did you know?"

"Coz that's how I met Gintoki at Yoshiwara. I was actually about to kill him at first, thinkin' that he was some kind of troublemaker."

"Wait, that's almost the same thing that happened with me. I also thought Katsura – san was some sort of thief since I saw him walking on my rooftop the night I met him, so I threw my laundry basket at him to make him fall." explained Ikumatsu although she might have tweaked her story a bit, since it's certainly really embarrassing to tell anyone about that bra incident with anyone. **(episode 39)**

While Ikumatsu preps the ramen, she and Tsukuyo talked more about their lives and other stuff. As the time passes by, they find it easier to talk with one another especially when they are talking about the idiotic things that the two guys had done.

Minutes had passed and finally their orders of ramen were done. Tsukuyo returned back to her sit while Saya put her phone back to her pocket.

"Here's your order, I hope you'll like it."

"Wow, it smells and looks so delicious." commented Saya.

Seeing Gintoki still 'out cold' on his place, Tsukuyo, whacked him in the head, forcing him up in pain.

"OUCH! WHAT DID YOU DO THAT FOR HUH?" growled Gintoki.

"Your food is almost cold. I suggest you eat it now before it cools down completely."

"MY FOOD WOULDN'T BE COLD IF SOMEONE DIDN'T THROW A FREAKIN' KUNAI AT ME!"

"Well, it's yer' fault ya' know?"

Knowing that arguing with her was pointless, Gintoki exclaimed a deep sigh and proceeded on splitting another pair of chopsticks.

"Now I know how Takanashi **(the main character of the anime WORKING!) **feels whenever he gets punched in the face, only mine is more painful since it's a kunai that's hitting me every single time."

"What do you mean you're like Takanashi? You're the exact opposite of him. You're careless, you're irresponsible and most of all you're LAZY!" rebutted Tsukuyo.

"I said 'what he feels' not what he's like. Besides you're not exactly the type of girl that Inami **(the androphobic waitress of Wagnaria in WORKING!) **is like. You're insensitive, unreasonable and extremely violent."

"WHAT DID YOU SAY ABOUT ME YA' GOOD FOR NOTHIN' PERM?"

"HEY, WHO YOU CALLIN' A GOOD FOR NOTHING YOU BABA?"

"You know if didn't know any better, I'm gonna think that you're like a married couple with problems." commented the teenage girl.

Hearing the side comment of the girl, the two glared at her sadistically, making Saya look away from fear. After all that commotion, things had finally settled down between the two. The three of them then turned their attention back to their bowls of ramen. Assuring herself that the two grown – ups won't start killing each other again, Saya clasped her hands together and yelled, "ITADAKIMASU!"

Moments later, everyone had finished their bowl. The two Yoshiwarnas were fully satisfied with their first ramen as Saya continued to lick her bowl, unable to get over the fact that her bowl was already empty. Seeing that everybody was finished, Ikumatsu walked onto them.

"So how was your first ramen?"

"It was great Ikumatsu – san. It's very delicious. Saya's even licking the bowl for more."

"I'm glad that you like it. If you want, I'll give you my phone number so you can call me for deliveries."

"That would be great. Harigatou Gozaimasu."

Suddenly, Katsura appeared beside them, surprising everyone.

"Would the ladies care for some Ebichahan?"

Without any warning, Ikumatsu punched Katsura in the face, dropping the rice and the Joui leader on the floor since she knows what that dish can do to the poor souls who would try to eat it.

"Katsura – san, can you please clean that? Someone clumsily dropped those plates of Ebichahan."

"R… right… away… I… kumatsu… dono…" said Katsura although, he just laid down on the floor.

"By the way." interrupted Gintoki. "What are you doing here Tsukki? I'm sure that you didn't come this far just to eat a bowl of ramen didn't you?"

Tsukuyo took a puff out in her newly lit kiresu before first before she answered. She then told them about everything that happened earlier, what they are doing in Kabukichou and about what the high jacking that they will do later. From everything that she had said, there was one thing that got stuck in Gintoki's mind and that was 'The Deaf Man'. He knew heard that nickname before but he just can't seem to remember when or who it was.

"Tsukki, do you have anything that could describe that guy?"

"As a matter of fact, I do. Saya,"

With her Kashira's word, the teenage kunoichi showed them her sketch. For a while, Gintoki looked at the image, trying to recognize the man. But once he recognizes who it was, his eyes widen which was quickly noticed by Tsukuyo.

"Gintoki, do you know who this man is?" she asked.

"Yeah… I know him… and the group he's with…"

Gintoki's tone seemed a bit off to her. She had never heard him speak in that manner before. This time, he seemed really serious and a bit nervous. This made her worry.

"W… what ja' mean? Spill it Gintoki"

"I don't exactly know his name… But I know for certain that he is a member of an extremist Jouishishi group… The Kiheitai…"

* * *

**CLASS 3-Z GINPACHI SENSEI SEGMENT:**

**Ginpachi**: Konichiwa minna. I'm sorry if I was out last meeting. I was really sick because of diabetes.

**Otae**: Diabetes sensei? You probably should start laying off from sweets starting with that lollipop from your mouth.

**Ginpachi**: You've goit it all wrong Otae – chan. I've got diabetes Type 1. I was lacking on my sugar intake that it caused my body to just shut down last time.

**Everyone**: WHAT!?

**Ginpachi**: It is what it is so just leave it okay. Anyway, do you have any questions in the chapter? Yes Bansai

**Bansai**: Sensei, are you sure you really don't know my name?

**Ginpachi**: Didn't I just called you by your name? Anyway, I think Author – sama can't seem to remember if I had known your name during the Shinsengumi Crisis Arc.

**Bansai**: Okay…

**Ginpachi**: Anyone else? Yes Shinpachi

**Shinpachi**: Sensei, why didn't I get a long screentime in this chapter?

**Ginpachi**: Fall in line with the others who wants it. Just be thankful that you still get some. (Shinpachi sits down, embarrassed) Last one for today, yes Kagura.

**Kagura**: I still don't get why that damn sadist tried to kiss me even if that was just to win the game.

**Ginpachi**: I think I can't answer that… Sougo can you answer that?

**Sougo**: Just like what I said in the chapter, it's called psychological sadism.

**Kagura**: But still… I…

**Sougo**: And why are you blushing China?

**Kagura**: I'M NOT BLUSHING!

**Kamui**: Acutually you are… Your face is as red as an apple. Speaking of which, maybe I'll chow down to some apple pie late…

Kagura then grabbed both Kamui and Sougo and banged their heads against each other and threw them off the window that Takasugi just opened.

**Ginpachi**: Oi oi, Takasugi, why did you open that window? Aren't those guys your friends?

**Takasugi**: Pfft, the only friend I need is this mascot of Yakult. (pointing to his side)

**Ginpachi**: (Sigh) What am I going to do with you… Class dismissed.

**Yakult Mascot**: Rate and Review and drink Yakult everyday.

**Takasugi**: Leave the worthless fanfic aside, If you don't drink Yakult, I will destroy you.

* * *

**A/N**: Whew, my chapters keep getting longer and longer. I'll try to limit myself up to 12k so that it won't be hard for you to read. Anyway, next chapter, we'll see the appearance of Bansai and probably the first action scene for the fic. Till next time, and don't forget to rate and review guys. Thanks a bunch. If you have some questions PM me.


	5. Memories From the Past Should Not Be

**A/N: I'm so, so, so sorry for being late guys. I guess the only excuses that I could give for being late was that I've got busy with the previews week reviewing for our exams and also I moved to my provincial home last Monday since the area where my dorm was in the city got hit by an immense storm. (Filipinos knows this) and I just came back to my apartment again this morning coz I already have classes today. (Good thing the place was not messed up) Hope that this chapter will somehow compensate for the lost time.**

**Anyway, Super thanks to Redguy221, Kurasuchi, Victoriqa, Generation Zero and Okita Kagura for reading my previews chapter. (Grovels for you)**

* * *

**Chapter 5: Memories from the Past Should Not Be Forgotten**

* * *

"Kiheitai? What's that?" asked Tsukuyo.

"It's a Joui group much like my faction but much more dangerous especially their leader." said Katsura who just stood up from his previous position, overhearing what they are talking about. "If that guy in the sketch is involved in this incident of yours, Tsukuyo - dono then most likely, _'he' _is planning something big. Don't you think Gintoki?"

"Who's _'he'_? Oi, Gintoki, tell me all about this person."

The man in question remained in silence. He doesn't want to talk about _'him'_ to anyone apart from Katsura and Sakamoto since he considers him to be a part of his past. Apart from his days at the Joui War, he doesn't want to talk about anything from his past especially when it is about his childhood, his late sensei and the moment when _'he'_ decided to turn his back on them.

"OI, GINTOKI!" shouted Tsukuyo to grab his attention.

But Gintoki, continued to remain quiet. Seconds later, he stood up from his seat, left some money on the table for his meal, said his goodbye to everyone and walked out of the shop.

Confused and irritated on what the permed samurai was doing, Tsukuyo decided to follow him to know what was really going on but Katsura blocked her.

"Let me talk to him Tsukuyo – dono. I think I know what's going on with him."

"But…"

"Don't worry Tsukuyo – dono. Trust me on this. I know how that bastard's mind works on these kinds of situations."

Seeing that it would probably be for the best, the Shinigami Tayou decided to stay put and let the other samurai talk things out with him. With that, Katsura followed Gintoki.

Back inside, Tsukuyo was still wondering why Gintoki acted like that when he found out about the "Deaf Man". Apart from her, someone else also got confused.

"What just happened back there?" asked Saya.

Noticing the looks on their faces, Ikumatsu sat with the two to somehow lighten their spirits up.

"Don't worry about it. If anyone can talk to Gintoki to just about anything, it's Katsura – san."

"Why is that?" asked the bewildered Shinigami Tayou.

"Well, I don't exactly know about their past but as far as I know, they have known each other for a very long time. Sometimes when the two of them are here on the same time, they would talk about their times during the Joui War. By the sound of things, I can say that they have been through rough times together."

Tsukuyo already knew about the samurai's involvement in the Joui War thanks to that Naraku assassin that they had encountered at the palace. Yet, she remembered something from her own past during those times. Ten years ago, while she was still a greenhorn in the Hyakka, Tsukuyo saw a group of samurais arrived at Yoshiwara while she was patrolling the streets. By the way they looked, it seem like they just came from a hard fought battle, as some of them still carried bruises, patches and bandages.

Thinking that they were nothing more than common men who looking for senseless pleasure to relax and please themselves, Tsukuyo ignored them and just continued with her duty.

Once she was done with her rounds on the entire district, she decided to stop in a rooftop of a bar and rest for a while. Suddenly, she saw a lone, white haired samurai walking out of the bar that she was at, heading towards the engawa of the place. Based on his looks, she thought that he was probably somewhere between the ages of sixteen and eighteen years old.

_'Pfft, isn't that guy a bit too young to participate in a war and to pleasure himself in this place? (Sigh) Men… they're all the same, no matter what age they are…" _said the kunoichi to herself, disappointed with the boy in front of her.

He then leaned himself against the wooden ledges and stared blankly at the moon. Upon closer observation, she thought that he didn't have a sexual contact with a courtesan inside since his hair wasn't that messy even though it was curly. Healso wasn't drenched in sweat **(if you know what I mean)**. Maybe she was mistaken. Maybe not every man comes to Yoshiwara just to please themselves. Maybe that boy was just dragged along by his superiors.

But apart from those, she noticed something unusual in his face. His eyes were full of sorrow and anguish. She thought that maybe it was caused by his fallen comrades which was common in a war or maybe there was something else.

Suddenly, a member of the Hyakka landed on the rooftop where she was, disturbing her observation of the boy. Apparently, her sensei, Jiraiya was looking for her, probably to give her another order. Complying with the command, Tsukuyo left the place and followed the other woman.

While they were leaping through the rooftops, she tried to look back at the white haired samurai at the engawa to somehow get a little glimpse of him as she was mystified by the way that he looked. That was the first and last time that she saw that young samurai… At least, that was she thought. Could it be that the boy she saw ten years ago was Gintoki?

"Tsukuyo – san… Tsukuyo – san… TSUKUYO – SAN!"

With the third mention of her name, Ikumatsu finally got into the Shinigami Tayou, snapping her back in reality.

"What just happened to you? You spaced out on me for a while."

"Sou… soumimasen… I was just thinkin' 'bout somethin'…"

"And I'm guessing you didn't hear what I have been talking about a while ago didn't you?"

Tsukuyo didn't say a word. Instead, she just looked down at the table, embarrassed with what just happened.

"I was saying that, ten years ago, Katsura – san, Gin – san and their companions went to the Red Light District to… you know… relax a bit… Apparently, Gin – san and one of their other companions selected the same courtesan at the same time. Ultimately, that courtesan preferred the other one over Gin –san. " repeated the store owner.

Hearing that new information, Tsukuyo confirmed that it was Gintoki that she saw ten years ago. But, her presumption about him was dead wrong. She then made a mental note to herself to throw another kunai through that thick skull of his, when he comes back or when she sees him again just because of that.

Who was she kidding? After all, it's Gintoki that they're talking about. Maybe after she saw him walked out the bar, he returned back to pick another courtesan or even took his turn after his friend was done with the woman.

"After that, Katsura – san said that Gin – san just went out of the place when he got rejected." said Ikumatsu.

"WHAT!?" asked Tsukuyo.

"I said, Gin – san walked away after that. Geez, what were you so surprised about?"

"No… nothing… It's just that… It's Gintoki ya' know… I just think that it's impossible for him to back away from that… It's like Ero – senin **(Jiraiya, one of the three Legendary Sanins of Konoha and Naruto's Sensei)** decided to ignore a group of beautiful ladies in front of him. It doesn't make sense." explained Tsukuyo. But deep down, she was thankful that he just walked away from it all. Maybe she was really just judging him too hastily without knowing more about him.

"I guess I can't blame you there. But on that night, none of them actually hooked up with a courtesan even the guy that was picked over Gintoki. Apparently the woman spoke to Katsura – san and told him that their friend was no fun at all because he got knocked out cold with just one shot of alcohol."

"I see… It was probably because they were still too young back then. I mean they were still boys after all... Actually, Gintoki still acts like a boy even up 'til now."

"I suppose you're right about that. Katsura – san seems to do the same thing as well."

After their conversation about the guys' past, a thought came into the ramen chef's mind. Why was that woman, reacting whenever she brought Gintoki up the topic? Why was she being so much affected by it?

Maybe that girlfriend theory was still too early to dismiss after all but it's for another person this time. Although she said that she had already abandoned her femininity, it was not what Tsukuyo was showing her at the moment based on Ikumatsu's feminine intuition. Since they just met earlier, she decided kept it to herself… for now.

* * *

Outside, Gintoki was about to hop on his scooter when Katsura threw a bomb in front of him, launching the permed samurai and his scooter into the sky.

"WHAT DID YOU THAT FOR ZURA?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I thought that you were a member of the Shinsengumi."

Annoyed by the remark made by his childhood friend, Gintoki used his helmet and whacked him on the head, uncaring about his previous injury on it.

"BAKA! HOW COULD YOU EVEN MISTAKEN ME FOR ONE OF THOSE ROTTEN COPS? I'M NOT EVEN WEARING THEIR STINKIN' UNIFORM!"

With a quick pat on his head, the long haired samurai quickly stood back up.

"Soumimasen, I really thought that you were that mayo freak of a vice-captain wearing a silver wig."

With his stress level already high, being compared to what he considers to be the most rotten among he's so called 'Tax Collectors' didn't helped at all. This time, he banged his head on the ground with such force, that it created a crater on the ground with Katsura's facial features on it.

But again, Katsura patted his head and stood up once more. This time, he looked seriously at Gintoki. Maybe now, he will get straight to the point. But unfortunately he didn't.

He pulled out a cigarette stick on his pocket and placed it on the permed samurai's mouth. He then pulled out a mayonnaise from his pocket again and placed it on his hand. Finally, he arranged Gintoki's hair to have a v shape pattern at the middle of his bangs.

"Hmm… close enough. You are indeed a Shinsengumi Ginto…"

His words were replaced by a wail of pain as his face met the edge of Gintoki's bokuto and got slammed down hard.

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING KONOYAROU!?" yelled Gintoki who had lost all of his patience with his old friend.

For the third time, the long haired samurai stood up and did the same routine once again.

"Oi Gintoki," called the super durable samurai.

"I swear if you try and turn me into that mayo freak once again, I'll shove my whole scooter down your throat Zura."

"Zura Ja Nai, Katsura Da."

"What is it anyway?" asked the Yorozuya Danna who was in the middle of rubbing his silver perm.

"Why did you just left all of a sudden? We were on a middle of a conversation with those two ladies aren't we?"

The man in question did not answer back. Instead, he turned his back on him and picked up his scooter back up.

"Oi Gintoki," he called again.

"You of all people should know the reasons for that Zura. This is not a problem where they need to get involved with. This is something that only involves the two of us... and Bakasugi."

By the sound of his voice Katsura knows that Gintoki is serious about what he was saying.

"I guess I'll agree with you on that matter but what about them? You know that they are determined to finish what they have started don't you? Besides, if their source is right, then they will be the ones to get into the warehouse first."

The permed samurai realized that Katsura was right. They are currently a step ahead of them. But then, an idea was formulated in his head.

"Oi Zura," he called as a grin formed in his face.

Looking at Gintoki's face, Katsura knew that he was up to something and most of the time it's always up to no good. But with the matter at hand, he couldn't help but get curious on what he was planning to do.

"Tell me, what's happening in that dark abyss that you call your brain Gintoki?"

"Do you still have Dragon Leader on the faction?"

Katsura was surprised that Gintoki knows about him since the spy's total existence was a secret and only members of the Joui knows about it.

"Of course. He was just out on a break for a while to shoot his latest movie called 'The Edo Zodiac' **(parody of Jackie Chan's action movie, The Chinese Zodiac)**. By the way, how did you know about him? Were you spying on us at Akiba Neo? Tell me Gintoki, is the Shiroyasha ready to finally make his return to the Jouishishi?"

"Stop hallucinating Zura. I just learn about him when I went to the internet to look for Ketsuno Ana's personal information in the Gintama wikia and saw his face at the bottom of the page along with some other characters that I haven't met yet. It's common in a wikia fan page for random characters to appear in a specific page you're looking at." explained Gintoki.

"Zura ja nai, Katsura da and why are you looking at the wikia page for? You know that a wikia page is not reliable to use as a resource don't you? I can easily change a page into anything I wanted it to be."

"OBJECTION!" yelled Gintoki, pointing his finger towards his companion. **(As done by Phoenix Wright in Ace Attorney)** "That may be so, but you already confirmed it with me begore you ask about my resources. So your accusation is pointless."

The Joui leader was caught off by this. He did not notice that he had already reacted on the matter at hand. Seeing that any further refutes are futile, he decided to let it be and go on.

"Alright fine, what is it that you're planning exactly Gintoki?"

"Ever watched Digimon Xros WarsZura?" **(6****th**** and latest season of Digimon)**

"Yes, I am aware of it. It's the season where they go 'Digi Cross' as their main form of evolution right? Elizabeth and I even recorded the entire series up until The Boy Hunter Who Leapt Through Time… Wait a minute; are you planning on Digi Crossing us with Dragon LEader to make us samurai spies? That's not possible Gintoki. We don't have Xros Loaders."

"Of course not dummy. It's impossible for such a thing to happen. Besides I don't want my nose to become that big. It's gonna hurt my image. Although I have to say that your look in the latest movie with Takasugi seems like a good Digi Cross to me. I'd call it, Zurasugi."

"ZuraSugi ja nai, TaKatsura da."

"Whatever… Anyway, do you remember how good infiltrators are the High Def Monitamons? I'm planning to do the same with Dragon Leader and a bunch of your spies. They track down the location on the warehouse, call us up and we storm right in with swords swinging."

"Hold it Gintoki" halted Katsura with a worried look on his face. "I don't think I can hurt any of my former subordinates. It's by my negligence that they ended up that way."

With rub of his fluffy hair, Gintoki thought of a way where they could work things out. "Fine, I'll deal with your boys, you handle the Amantos. Does that seem fine to you?"

Nodding his head, Katsura agreed with the plan and even gave a spare phone to him for communication. Gintoki gladly accepted it since he knows that Katsura wasn't like that Mimawarigumi scum who keeps on saying elite that likes to text by the second without any sufficient reason whatsoever.

With everything settled, Gintoki hopped back on his scooter. But before he left, the Joui leader had one last question.

"What would I tell them if they ask about you involving yourself with all of this?"

"Tell them this…"

With that, Gintoki got revved up his scooter and dashed off to prepare everything that he will need later when Katsura gives him the go signal. And also, leave a note in the house that he will be out until tomorrow because he senses that it will be a long night ahead of them.

Katsura in turn, grabbed hold of his phone and contacted Dragon Leader. He told him the story and what was needed to be done.

* * *

Back at the shop, a woman's shriek was suddenly heard from the back. A white penguin / duck creature then came running out, shielding itself with a sign board from the barrage of kunais that was being thrown at it.

'Ikumatsu – dono' wrote / yelled Elizabeth who came running towards the said woman. Following him from behind was an enraged Saya, holding a handful of kunais in both hands. Scared of the frantic girl, Elizabeth quickly hid behind Ikumatsu, thinking that she could somehow talk some senses into her.

"Wait, wait, WHAT THE HECK IS HAPPENING HERE ELIZABETH - SAN?" asked the confused shop owner.

"Saya, what's the meaning of this and how did you got over there when you were just sitting next to me a while ago?" followed up Tsukuyo.

"I went to take a piss while you were spacin' out a while ago at me and Ikumatsu – san. And then while I was about to release, that… THING came in."

Just by looking at her facial expression, Saya's plea was more than enough for Ikumatsu to kick the poor Renho to her front to receive his punishment. After all, one of the most hated people by any woman is a peeping tom.

"Elizabeth – san… I never thought that you were the kind of person to do that sort of thing especially to young women."

The Renho didn't expect that the ramen shop owner would turn on him. Once he glanced upon her face, it looked to him like he was facing a combination of an Onryu and a Goryo **(Types of Japanese Ghosts)**. Not wanting to get a serious beat down, Elizabeth tried to reason with the both of them.

'I only did that because I also wanted to take a piss myself. It just so happened that the door was opened so I thought that nobody was in. It was an honest mistake. Really'

Unconvinced by the awkward creature's explanation, Ikumatsu showed him her rolling pin, patting it with her hand back and forth. With a big gulp, the Renho braced himself for a beating of his life. But before anyone of them could lay a finger on him, Tsukuyo stood in front of him.

"Hold on a sec." halted Tsukuyo. "Saya, are you sure that Elizbeth – san entered the comfort room while you were in there?"

"OF COURSE HE DID! DO YOU THINK I WOULD REACT LIKE THIS JUST TO CAUSE A SCENE KASHIRA?"

"Alright fine, I believe you. But let me ask you this. Did you close the door first?"

"What do you mean by that Tsukuyo – san?" asked by a confused Ikumatsu.

Saya stood in silence. She can't remember if she had closed the door first after she went in or not. Her statue like silence and stiffness was enough to give a clear image to Tsukuyo of what happened. With a puff of her kiresu, she explained what happened to everyone.

"You see, Saya here lives alone in an apartment for courtesans in Yoshiwara ever since she started earnin' enough money for it. One time when I visited her, she left her front door open so I came in. I found her in the comfort room takin' a piss because the door was also opened. The next time I visited her, her front door was left opened again while she was watching a soap opera. This door thing happened again for almost everytime I visit her. I guess she got used on livin' alone so much in that apartment that it become a bit of a habit to her in leavin' the door open."

Everyone was surprised on the 'enlightenment' that the Shinigami Tayou gave to them about the misunderstanding that happened in the shop. Even Elizabeth who was supposed to become a suspect of sexual harassment was wierded out by that attitude of hers.

"E… Elizabeth – san, was the door ALREADY opened when you ARRIVED THERE?" asked Ikumatsu who was still in disbelief.

'Yes it was' confidently answered the Amanto in question.

"I… is that true Saya – chan?"

"Uhm… I… I guess so… I… uhm… actually don't notice it… happening…" said an embarrassed Saya whose face was starting to flush.

Feeling sorry for her subordinate, Tsukuyo came to her side and wrapped her arm around her neck to somehow comfort her.

"It's okay Saya. Don't worry about it. It's your first time up here anyway." She then turned her attention to Elizabeth. "Uhm… Soumimasen for what she had done to you. She's not used to things around here. I hope you can forgive her."

"Me too Elizabeth – san" added Ikumatsu. "I'm sorry if I accused you prematurely."

'It's okay I guess." wrote Elizabeth in his sign board. 'I didn't know that she has that habit anyway.' With that, the unidentified walking object, went to the back of the shop and exited in the alleyway, to get some fresh air for a while and relieve himself from the life threatening encounter that he had with a female kunoichi with some serious door closing problems.

"By the way," brought out Tsukuyo "Who or what exactly is he/ she / it Ikumatsu – san?"

The ramen shop owner placed her finger on her lip, thinking of an answer to give to Tsukuyo. Apparently, she doesn't know what the creature exactly is. And so, she said the easiest thing that she could say that the Renho was…

"Elizabeth - san is… well… let's just say that he's Katsura – san's partner… He's like the equivalent of Shinpachi and Kagura to Gintoki… I think…"

"Uh... Okay I guess…" replied Tsukuyo who was still somehow confused with the said Amanto.

"Even though Katsura – san, considers him as a male, the fact that he / she has a female's name makes things really complicated… He's like Plue** (The Celestial Spirit from Fairy Tail and the Rave Bearer from Rave)**… We don't know what exactly he is. Some says he's a dog, others say he is a snowman. In Fairy Tail, **(An anime that is focused on mages and guilds) **they consider him to be a male but in Rave, **(Anime about a teenage boy in a quest to find the five pieces of the sacred stone Rave in order to bring peace to the world)**,Plue is considered to be uncategorized."

"But there's a big difference between the two of 'em." rebutted the teenage kunoichi. "Plue is cute and adorable and Elizabeth is just plain creepy."

"Oh come on, Elizabeh – san isn't that bad. Merchandisers, bakers and even pyro technicians have used Elizabeth's image for a lot of their works. **(Yes this is true in Japan)** Surely, the consumers and the audience think that he / she/ it is kind of cute, won't you say?"

The bashful teenager pouted her face and looked away, disagreeing with the facts that the Ramen Chef had stated.

Noticing the reaction of her subordinate, Tsukuyo couldn't help but let out a sigh in disbelief. She really hates it when she doesn't get it her way especially when she thinks that she is right about what she is thinking.

Moments later, Katsura came back on the ramen shop and to everyone's surprise, he brought along with him his permed companion, although he looked a bit unusual than normal.

"I'm back. I told you I can reason out with this guy, didn't I, Ginzabeth?"

It was Elizabeth, cosplaying as Gintoki, complete with his normal attire, bokuto and even the dead fish eyes.

'I only came along with you because you promised to give me a year supply of strawberry milk Zura.'

"Zura janai, Katsura da. But that's not important. What's important right now is that the infamous Shiro Renho has finally agreed to join the Joui Patriots again. Now, nobody can stop us from doing our cause."

'And suck the entire country out of its sweets'

"Finally, we'll take over Edo and proclaim ourselves, Sho–"

Suddenly, a mountainous pile of pots, plates and utensils landed on top of the Dynamic Duo, interrupting their state of the ramen shop address, pinning them flat on the floor on their bellies.

"Whoops, silly me, I knew I shouldn't have carried those things all at once. Good thing no one was under that pile." sarcastically stated by Ikumatsu.

As the two struggled to get out of the pile of kitchenware above them, Saya came towards them and crouched down.

"Ahh, Saya – dono, could you please lend Elizabeth and me a hand or two over here? We're kind of stuck."

"Katsura – san," started the teenage girl as a smile forms into her face. "Before I can do that, tell us first where Sakata – sama is and don't tell me that he is right beside ya'."

Noticing the sheer determination in the eyes of the young woman, the pinned down samurai decided to talk since he knew that no matter how much he resisted, she would just continue to pester him until she gets what she wanted. Aside from that, he also saw another face that showed a bit of concern towards the silver permed samurai but quickly diminishes them once the woman notices his eyes gazing upon her.

Turning his sights back to the younger woman, Katsura agreed with her and began talking.

"Gintoki said he was going home. He said that he has to be back home before Leader – sama and Sadaharu – dono gets back from their walk at the park. Besides that, he said that he still has to buy his weekly supply of strawberry milk and Sadaharu – dono's dog food from the store."

"Didn't he mention anything about anything related to the Kiheitai or the group that we're after?" interrupted Tsukuyo.

"Oh that… If I remember correctly, he said that he's not interested in taking part on the mess that you're dealing with and even if he was, he knows that you wouldn't allow him anyway since it's your job and you don't like it when he interferes."

"Is that so? Well… if you see him again, tell him… thanks… for understandin'… " said the Sinigami Tayou. She then stood up from her seat and turned to the Ramen Cook. "Thank you for the meal Ikumatsu – san, it was quite the treat."

"Leaving already? " asked Ikumatsu in a sad tone as she gave out a deep sigh. "I guess that can't be helped… Come back anytime again when your around Tsukuyo – san, you too – Saya – san. I really enjoy talking with you guys."

"Of course we will… Ikuzo Saya."

Obeying her Kashira's command, right after they said their goodbyes, the two kunoichi left the place.

On their way back to Yoshiwara, Saya couldn't help but think that she had forgotten something that she had to do before they left at the shop but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

"Saya – chan… I thought we had a deal…" mumbled the still pinned down Katsura along with his partner. He then turned to Ikumatsu. "Ikumatsu – dono" He called. "Can you please help us out of here?"

Despite his pleas for help, the ramen chef just walked passed him and headed in the kitchen instead. With the weight of the pile continuing to press against their backs, the delinquent duo's consciousness started to fade especially Katsura's.

"Elizabeth… This might be the end for us… so before I go… let me just say that I wouldn't have picked anybody by my side to die with than you…"

'Katsura – san…'

"Good… Good… Good Niiiggghttt…" **(This is the trademark of Good Night Shimokawa from Beelzebub)** After uttering those words, Katsura presumably blacked out.

'KATSURA – SAN! It's not right that you die with a quote from a useless delinquent. Although you would look great as the leader of the MK – 5 when you are Zurako and Shimokawa did became a member as a plus one, IT'S STILL NOT RIGHT!' **(MK – 5, a group of delinquents in Beelzebub with a homosexual for a leader)**

* * *

It was in the middle of the afternoon. Kagura was taking a nap on the sofa while Sadaharu was lying down on his usual spot under the kotatsu after a long day at the park. Somehow, the Yato was happily napping even though she had a rough time with her sadistic arch nemesis earlier.

It seemed that the all you could eat buffet meal store that she ate at was more than enough to take her mind off that moment and send her and Sadaharu home with a full belly even though it cost her the remainder of her allowance and caused the store to be closed for a week since the two Amantos devoured every stock that the store had.

Suddenly, the main fusuma of the house slid open and in came the silver permed man of the house. Seeing her daughter figure **(as a lot of fans including me see) **slumbering peacefully on the couch, he didn't bother to announce that he was already home or wake her up.

With things happening to his favour, Gintoki continued on with his plan and wrote a note. Once he was finished, he left the note on the table and even placed a box of sukonbu on top of it so that it will be noticeable.

Moments later, the phone that was given to the permed samurai began to vibrate. It was Katsura, who was by the way freed by Ikumatsu eventually along with Elizabeth from their position since she felt sorry for them.

The text read, _'Gintoki, Dragon Leader has found the place where the group is working at just like you said. It's on the abandoned factory where you took the kids to see the creation of the patriot.'_

_'How did Zura knew that place?'_ asked Gintoki to himself. Suddenly, his phone vibrated again.

'_Zura ja nai, Katsura da, I looked it up the internet just like you did with Dragon Leader.'_

Gintoki was creep out by his text mate's reply. Now he was bewildered how he was able to reply without him texting back. But again the pone vibrated.

'_You must be wondering how I am able to send you these messages without you replying huh? Well, if I must tell you, I'm looking on a site that Elizabeth recommended me to look at called ' '. The name of the site itself sounded dumb to me and it looks like it's a site for people who have no social life. __**(**_**Author tickles Zura so hard that he almost shit his pants and made him grovel for apology to the viewers and authors of this site.) **_Anyway, there's this fiction that is really badly written but actually, it's like about us and what is currently happening. There are five chapters on it though and for some reason, I can't access the other chapters and the only viewable one isn't even finished.'_

_'IF THAT WAS THE CASE, THEN WHY DID'NT YOU JUST READ THAT DAMN FICTION IN THE FIRST PLACE AND WASTED DRAGON LEADER'S EFFORTS?'_

_ 'Elizabeth just told me about it a while ago after asking Dragon Leader and after I filled him in with what we will be doing later. Apparently he is a fan of these stories. But enough of that meet us at the bridge so we can go together.'_

With a specific location on where they are to go, Gintoki prepared to leave the house once again. But before that, he went first to the kitchen and grabbed a carton of his strawberry milk, to 'resupply' his sugar content. Once he finished the carton, he went out and hopped back to his trusted silver scooter, revving it up towards their meeting place.

* * *

Shortly after he left, the silver permed samurai arrived at the big bridge where Katsura who was now wearing his usual clothes was waiting with Elizabeth.

"Yo," called Gintoki. "So, where do we go from here?"

"Hop off your bike Gintoki. You won't need it." suggested the Joui leader.

"Eh? What do you mean by that Zura? Besides, if I'm not using my scooter, how are we supposed to get there quickly?"

Katsura pointed his thumb over his shoulder. Following the direction that he pointed, Gintoki saw a gray truck parked on the other side of the bridge. This made him confused. What was the reason why Katsura brought a truck on their infiltration when it can be easily noticed by anyone?

"You're probably thinking what's the purpose of this truck aren't you?" asked the said man, interrupting his companion's pondering.

"Damn it Zura! Stop anticipating what I am about to say. It's really irritating you know."

"Zura ja nai, Katsura da and for your information, this is the same model of the trucks that those guys in that warehouse use to transport the weapons that they get to their destination according to Dragon Leader."

Gintoki was taken aback by what his childhood friend had stated. It was something that was completely opposite to what they had planned earlier.

"Oi oi" he complained. "I thought we were going to just do a plain straight forward, heads on plan. What's with this truck thing now Zura?"

"Don't get me wrong Gintoki. We're still going through with the plan because I want my men out of this mess as fast as possible. It's just that, with this truck, we'll be harder to detect and it will be easier for us to get inside the building." explained Katsura.

Seeing the point of the long haired samurai, Gintoki agreed with the plan and placed his scooter on the back of the truck and held Katsura responsible if anything happens to it since he was the one who suggested it.

It was nearly sun set when they arrived at the warehouse. Just like what Dragon Leader informed them, it was tightly guarded by a combination of "ghost" Joui Members and numerous species of Amantos.

At the entrance of the building, they were immediately stopped by a squad at a checkpoint as a measure of their standards of operations for precautionary purposes. With the masks and gloves that hey received from Elizabeth and some empty cardboard boxes to cover his scooter, they made it past them with ease.

A few minutes later, they made it inside the warehouse. What greeted them were piles and piles of canon shells and numerous types of explosives ranging from c4's, dynamites and grenades. It was no doubt to the both of them that Takasugi was planning something and it was big. They then parked the vehicle in a space where he others were.

With a look at one another, the two samurai gave each other a nod and initiate their plan. Elizabeth stayed behind to plan their escape, if things don't go well. Dropping their disguise to make them more comfortable, the two were about to head into the middle of the factory when Gintoki noticed something off with Katsura.

"Oi oi, what's up with that get up Zura. You look like somebody who's going into a rap contest." commented Gintoki on Katsura's choice of clothing.

"Rap ja nai, Katsurap da yo." said the man in question with his distinctive hip hop post.

"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!? ARE YOU PLANNING TO GET YOURSELF KILLED KONOYARO?

"Just stand back and watch Gintoki. You'll see the power of the Katsurap when I use it. You can sing along to if you want. It will make the song better and catchier."

"LIKE HELL I'LL DO THAT! I'D RATHER HAVE SADAHARU BITE MY HEAD THE WHOLE DAY THAN DO THAT SHIT WITH YOU!"

* * *

It was a regular day at work for the 'Ghost' Joui members when they noticed two uncanny figures entering their workspace from the parking lot entrance. From afar, they can see that they were wearing Hip hop / B-boy clothes with one carrying a boom box.

"Halt, who goes there?" shouted one of the men but the two figures ignored it and continued their pacing.

As they come nearer, one of the 'Ghost' Joui, recognizes one of the two.

"I… is that… Katsura – sama?"

With the mention of their former leader's name, every one of them had also noticed him.

"My, my, what do you think you guys are doing, lazing around this filthy dump? Make yourselves useful and get back to the faction." stated their former leader.

Hearing his plea, everyone started laughing at him.

"Oi oi, I don't know what happened to you since we've left but I have to say, you have gone nuts."

"He's right Katsura – sama. Don't you see? This is what we were supposed to do on the first place. Taking action to liberate Edo"

"Is that so? Then tell me, if you are liberating Edo, then why are you working for the Amantos?"

That question silenced the crowd. They also didn't know why since no one actually explained the details of their entire operation until one of them spoke up.

"Then let us ask you as well, why are you keeping an Amanto as a pet and why are you befriending that China Yato girl Katsura – sama?"

It took a long pause but Katsura came up with an answer but none the less, he thought of one. "That was because my ideals before was wrong... Not all of them are as bad as we think they are. Some of them like the ones who are manipulating you are heartless bastards and there are some like Elizabeth and Leader – sama who are kind hearted and just want to live in this land in peace. Our one true enemy are the Bakufu, the ones who server under them and he Amantos who abuse the citizens of Edo."

After hearing his speech, everyone started mumbling and whispering with one another, realizing the point that Katsura was implying to them. Everyone was now having second thoughts on the choice that they have made. Suddenly, their former leader spoke up.

" And in case that you've forgotten about your cause, then let me remind you of that again. Ikuso Gintoki. 3, 2, 1…"

He then placed the boom box down and hit play. Seconds later, hip hop music started playing. Katsura was pumped up to go while Gintoki, who was not wearing the same crap as his 'friend' was less enthusiastic to do it.

_'Zura  
Zura  
Yaru nara imashike ne Zura  
Yaru nara imashike ne Zura  
Joui ga Joy  
Joy ga Joui'_

"All right here comes the important part" signalled D.J. Ozura to his partner. Gintoki in turn, just raised up a sign board that somehow managed to get in his grasps and it read, 'Joui is Dumb' making the composer of the song agitated.

"WHAT THE HELL!? THAT'S WRONG! YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO SHOUT IT OUT LOUD , NOT RASIE A SIGNBOARD! I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT YOU DID THE SAME STUNT AS ELIZABETH DID BUT WORSE! YOU EVEN CHANGED THE LYRICS!"

"BAKA! DO YOU THINK YOU COULD REASON OUT WITH THESE BUMS WITH THAT PIECE OF CRAP? JUST LOOK AT THEM, THEY'RE BASICALLY FROZEN IN THEIR PLACE AFTER LISTENING TO THAT!"

"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY ABOUT MY MASTERPIECE?"

"I SAID IT WAS A MASTERSHIT"

"WHY YOU!?"

As the tension between the two grows more by the seconds, the two failed to see that the Joui members had gone down with their knees with their face meeting the floor and their hands stretched out, doing grovels. By the time they saw it, they were all crying and sobbing down on the floor.

"Oi oi , what is this supposed to be?" asked the confused silver permed samurai. "Don't tell me the crap that you did caused all these Zura."

"Soumimasen Katsura – sama. We've forgotten why we joined and stayed at the Joui Patriouts on the first place… and that was because we shared laughter, sorrows, failures and achievements together and became like a family." said one of the members.

"Yeah, in here, even though we get paid, we never really liked in this place. We're just like robots who only follow instructions and nothing more. They never cared about us if we get tired or ill or tell us what are we really doing or who are we working for. A sun glassed spiky haired man with a guitar on his back just told us that it's for the greater good of Edo and that was it."

"Please take us back Katsura – sama… We'll do whatever it takes just to get back to the Joui Patriots."

With the mention of that one phrase, a form suddenly grew on Gintoki's face, bringing out the sadistic side out of him.

"Oi Zura, they said anything right? How about you asked them to give all their money to me since they felt guilt about leaving the faction? You can even treat that as a form of initiation for – "

The next thing he knew, his face was hit by the boom box that the long haired samurai was using a while ago.

"OI WHAT WAS THAT FOR ZURA!" yelled the agitated perm.

"There's no need for that Gintoki. Part of it was my fault since I was kind of neglectful lately and I wasn't even listening to their pleas. So starting tomorrow, if you guys will return, I will add 5000 Jouishishi yen to you accounts that can be spent for a session of training."

"THAT'S NOT A BENEFIT. THAT'S JUST TRASH!"

But contrary on Gintoki's comment, everyone cheered on what Katsura had said.

"WHAT ARE THESE MORONS CHEERING ABOUT? DON'T THEY KNOW THAT THEY ARE JUST WASTING THEIR LIVES AGAIN ON THIS PAYLESS CAUSE?"

After hearing Gintoki's Tsukomi, Katsura gave a small chuckle on it.

"That Gintoki is because, they have the soul of a proud Patriot and nothing is more rewarding than that. I… I'm so proud." said Katsura as tears hysterically, started pouring out of his eyes.

"BAKA! I THOUGH YOU'VE SAID THAT YOU WERE THE REASON THEY LEFT AND NOW YOU SAY THEY HAVE THE SOUL OF A PROUD PATRIOT? DO YOU WANT ME TO WHACK YOU HARD WITH A PATRIOT!?"

But unbeknownst to them, a squad of Amantos entered the building after hearing all the commotion that was going on from outside.

* * *

Meanwhile in Yoshiwara, Tsukuyo, and Saya met up with their acquaintance on their meeting place. Just like he promised, he showed up.

"So what's going through your heads right now?" asked the man.

"We thought about it…" followed the Shinigami Tayou. "We decided that you would take us to that place instead."

Her plan sounded ridiculous to the man. "What the heck are you talking about woman? How am I supposed to take you there? I 'm clocked out. I can't drive a truck since everything is occupied."

"Leave that to me." said the younger kunoichi with a grin forming in her face.

Looking at her expression, Tsukuyo couldn't help but to put her palm in her forehead in disbelief. She knew that when she had that look on her face, she's up to no good. And it was.

After guiding them to the warehouse where the trucks are, Saya proceeded with her plan while Tsukuo and the man remained hidden. Once the teenager was in sight of the men, she did something that her Kashira wouldn't expect out from her.

She pulled up the slit of the side of her kimono and started showing her leg to them with a seducing face to match it with.

"Hey boys," the girl flirtatiously said, immediately catching their attention. "I heard that you guys were really workin' hard on somethin'… Why don't you take a break first and have some fun with moi'?"

Three of the men were already wolf whistling at the sight of the young 'courtesan' in front of them. But one of them placed his hand in front of his co – workers, blocking their way.

"Wait a minute girly…" the tone in his words made Tsukuyo a bit nervous. Did he see through her plan? What will they do to her if they did? She was ready to pounce but then… "How much are you?" followed the man up.

"I… it's already paid sir. A friend of yers' came earlier at our shop and paid already. He said that it was a reward for your dedication to your job. He also gave me the pleasure of fetchin' you gentlemen here and…" she took a pause to look away from them, faking a blush. "maybe we could also do somethin' before we go there to set the mood."

Everybody was astonished at her 'charisma' and simply just wanna get it on. Besides, she was young, pretty, bubbly and curvy. They just wanted to get on her. With everything going as she planned, Saya lead the men into a dark corner.

On the other hand, her Kashira was so shocked to see on what she had done that her jaw dropped on disbelief. Even their accomplice was somehow enchanted by her seduction skills as blood started running down his nose. Disturbed by the said man, Tsukuyo, whacked him in the head, knocking him out temporarily.

'_Damn it Saya, how did you learn to do that so naturally?_' asked the bewildered Shinigami Tayou to herself who was still in total disbelief.

The next thing she knew, Saya was already out in the open space, signalling them that everything was now okay. Looking at the corner they saw the pile of men beaten to a bloody pulp. Since they were the only one who was conscious around, they came out to the open.

Saya saw her Kashira pacing fast towards her. She was expecting that she will give her a hug for a job well done. But instead of a warm, comforting feeling, she felt as if her oxygen supply was quickly depleting. Apparently, her Kashira was enraged on the stunt that she just did a while ago.

"ARE YA' FREAKIN' INSANE!? WHERE DID YOU LEARN TO THAT CRAP!?" demanded an enraged Tsukuyo who was choking and shaking her apprentice.

"I… watched… the… others… do… it… Doncha… do… that… same… shit… too… Kashira?"

"WHO THE HELL TOLD YA' THAT I DO THAT STUFF EH!? NEVER IN MY LIFE DID I EVER WISHED OR DREAMT ABOUT DOING IT!"

As Tsukuyo continues to choke the life out of her youngling, their associate who has now regained his consciousness got their attention. "Uh, I don't want to ruin your little moment together but the sun's going down and time's running out."

Seeing that he has a point, Tsukuyo let go of Saya. They then hopped into the front seats of the truck and drove off.

While on their way, Saya thought of an idea.

"Kashira…"

"Hmm?"

"I was thinking…"

"What is it?"

"Maybe you could try that shit that I did a while ago to seduce Sakata – sama and then – "

Before she could even finish what she was saying, Tsukuyo whacked her in the head, knocking the teenager out cold as a bulge formed on it. The man noted that the older woman's face flushed but decided to ignore it since he didn't want to end up like her underling.

* * *

"What is going on in here?" asked a pig formed Amanto

"Oi, why are you useless mongrels standing there for? Get back to work!" ordered by a lizard one.

But despite what they've ordered, none of the men obeyed. Instead, they all went to the back, revealing two familiar figures to the Amantos.

"What the? Is that Katsura?"

"It is… But he looks really stupid right now don't you think?"

"Who cares what he looks like? He's my prey."

"Not if I beat you to him first."

Suddenly, they noticed that their so called 'prey' had somebody beside him. Upon closer inspection, the Amanto squad felt a cold chill down their spines when they realized that he was none other than the infamous Shiroyasha.

"IT'S THE SHIROYASHA!" yelled one of them.

"W… WHAT'S HE DOING HERE!?"

"QUICK, CALL THE OTHERS!"

Seeing he reaction of the frantic aliens, Katsura somehow felt insulted as he was looked down upon by those low lives and feared the image of Gintoki. To him, it implied to as, him being the inferior one between the two of them, where in fact, they both killed almost the same number of Amantos during the Joui War.

"Oi Gintoki did those runts just called me weak?" asked the aggravated man.

"I think they did Zura."

"Hmph… If that's what they think about me, then I guess, I'm gonna have to show them how 'weak' I really am. huh?" said Katsura as he remove his hip hop clothes and unsheathes his katana.

Seconds later, platoons of Amantos swarmed the place, weapons in hand. The now rejoined Joui members offered their assistance in combat but their leader disapproves it and told them to just go home and let them handle the situation at hand.

Though it was against their will, they decided to follow his orders since they trust in his decision making as well as his fighting abilities and his companion's.

After all of them have left the area, Gintoki took out his bokuto from his waist. But before he could enter his stance, Katsura interrupted him.

"So what's the plan of attack?" asked Katsura.

"Pfft… Is that even a question Zura? There is only one plan… ATTACK!"

With that, the Shiroyasha and the Noble Youth of Madness charged in to the crowd of Amantos with their swords in front of them. As a response, the group of Amantos greeted them the same way.

One by one, Gintoki and Katsura hacked and slashed through the Amantos one by one while dodging and / or blocking the attacks that were being thrown at them. There were times when they would use their numbers against the two, compressing them and lunging themselves afterwards, attempting to hold them down.

But the two were able to deflect them by swinging their weapons on them, knocking them down and falling on their comrades behind. Then they would take advantage of the situation to finish them off.

To them their attacks were like watching a slo – mo video where they can easily predict and counter every attack that the enemy was giving them since they were already used to this sort of thing before. In their opinion, they think that the guys from before are a lot better compared to these jokers. But still, as werid as it may seem, they found it strangely entertaining.

"Oi oi Zura, doesn't his feel like the good old times?" sarcastically asked Gintoki.

"Yeah. I missed cutting down bastards like these."

"I'll say. Now you're just reduced into a runaway Joui. Most of the times, you're always getting chased by those rotten cops. It's rare that you get this kind of action. So better savour it while you can."

"The same goes to you. Leader – sama had informed me that you are also running away Gintoki, not from the Shinsengumi but from an old lady who is constantly reminding you to pay for your rent."

As the two samurai continued to cut down the huge group one by one, some of them had started to run away, probably calling for back up or informing their superiors that their operation has been infiltrated.

Not wanting that to happen, Gintoki leaped from the crowd and tracked down the runaway Amantos. With a desperate struggle, they tried to fend off the raging Shiroyasha but failed miserably.

Moments have passed. Everyone from the Amanto side was either dead, courtesy of Katsrua's katana or beaten and bruised so badly that they were laid out cold thanks to Gintoki's bokuto. As they scan through the area, they encountered a cheetah faced Amanto who seem to be crawling away from the grounds.

Slowly they approached the said creature and by the time they caught up to him, they forced him up to his feet.

"P… please… spare me… I… I will tell you everything you want to know… Just don't hurt me any further…" begged the scared creature.

"Don't worry…" started Gintoki with a devilish smile on his face. "We just want to ask you some questions. If that's okay with you…"

Just by looking at his face, the Amanto screamed to the top of his lungs, scared of the image that was in front of him.

"Gintoki… stop that. You're scaring him." halted Katsura who now took over the questioning.

"Did you just tell us that you will tell us everything we want to know?"

"Yes… Just don't hurt me anymore… please…"

"Alright then… Question number one… There are three Joui patriots and ten Amantos on the battlefield. If those three killed five Amantos and they killed a jouishishi in return… How many noses does Jackie –"

His 'supposed to be questioning' was then interrupted when Gintoki whacked him on the head with his fists causing a huge bulge to grow out of his head.

"WHAT KIND OF A QUESTION IS THAT HUH?"

"IT WAS A MATH PROBLEM…"

"WHO THE HELL CARES ABOUT MATH? WHY DON'T YOU JUST ASK HIM ABOUT THE THING WE REALLY NEED AND NOT THAT JOUI EXAM LIKE QUESTION HUH?"

"Alright, fine…" replied Katsura, turning his attention back to the Amanto "Where do these weapons go when they are loaded into the trucks?"

"Uhm… Uh… I…" the Amanto gave a long pause after his stuttering.

Getting impatient by the second, Gintoki slashed his sword in front of their 'informant', letting him feel the force that he can make, telling him that they are not to be fooled with. Suddenly, a section of the wall was split in two and eventually fell apart on the ground.

" Oi oi" said the permed samurai with a serious look. "Better start talking if you don't want to end up like that wall over there."

Seeing that these men were dead serious, the Amanto took in a big gulp and started talking. "We… take it to the pier you see… There's a ship that's waiting there…"

"Can you tell us who's ship it is?" asked Katsura.

"It's the Kiheitai's…"

Upon hearing the name, the two samurai gave another look at each other signalling to them that their hunch was correct.

"Now tell me." butted Gintoki. "If what you say is true the ship where you drop these stuffs to belongs to them, then why are Amantos working with them? Last time I check, they hate Amantos."

"Well that was before until they formed a truce with the Harusame not too long ago."

This news surprised them, leaving them silent. Why and how can a former leader of the Joui who dislikes these creatures so much was able to make a pact with them?

The quietness inside was then broken up when Gintoki spoke up. "That's impossible. Harusame hates humans… especially him. How could he join forces with the Kiheitai?"

"We are not lead by Harusame anymore…" which surprised the two even more. "We are not with the Hausame Space Pirates that you know of. We are part of the Harusame group that is led by Kamui Taichou."

Katsura was somehow dumbfounded by this since he doesn't know anyone who goes by that. He turned to his companion, hoping to know if he knows anybody by that name.

Apparently he does but somehow, Gintoki was shocked to hear it. That name was someone whom he knew who cannot be taken on lightly. He knows what kind of a beast he can be as stated by Umibozu who happened to be his father. He knew that his lust for battle against anyone who he considers strong.

'No… why… how… This is impossible… Knowing that bastard brother of Kagura, he wll want nothing more to fight someone strong… Takasugi hates every Amanto. How the hell would've agreed to join forces?' asked the silver permed samurai to himself.

"So do you know the guy?" asked Katsura, interrupting his pondering.

"Yeah" he confirmed. "The guy's an Amanto, a Yato clansman to be exact."

"A Yato huh?" said the long haired samurai, crossing his arms to his chest. "Definitely a group that you don't want to mess with"

"It gets worse… That punk is Kagura's baka nii – chan."

"What!? Leader – sama has a brother?" asked the also surprised, newly informed samurai.

"Yeah and a tough one as well"

"Great!" said Katsura sarcastically. "What do we do now?"

"What else is there? We go to the pier and have our little reunion with Bakasugi and his new friend."

"That's fine by me but what do we do with our 'friend' over here?"

Gintoki looked at the Amanto who was starting to get nervous with the look that he was giving to him.

"Hey, I thought we had a deal? I tell you what you want ad you let me go?"

"Yeah yeah, but we didn't said that we will let you go in here."

Looking at the demonic smile on the face of the Shiroyasha, the Amanto could only expect the worse for him.

Without a second thought, the permed samurai effortlessly carried the Amanto to his back and started walking towards the parking area where Elizabeth was playing his Bentendo TS while waiting for them to come back.

Once they got into the vehicle, Gintoki took the wheel while Katsura held their captive in between the two of them to tell them the directions to where the ship was. Obviously, it wouldn't be spotted easily since their activity was illegal so they needed someone who was familiar to its location.

* * *

Minutes after the samurais had left, Tsukuyo and company arrived near the factory.

"Something's not right here." said the man.

"What do you mean by that?"

"This place should already have Amantos and Joui Members guarding the entrance or something. It's never left unattended."

"I'll go check it out." She then got down from the vehicle. "Saya, stay here with him alright. He might try to escape. We still need a ride for later."

"Ryoukai!"

"Ouch, you don't trust me?"

Tsukuyo ignored him and just went on. Heaving a deep breath, the man just closed his eyes in disbelief.

At the outskirts of the warehouse, Tsukuyo spotted some Amantos lying motionlessly on the ground. She concluded that something might have happened earlier.

She went to investigate further. Her eyes shot wide open at the scene in front of her. Bodies of Amantos were lying in puddles of blood. Looking at the wounds on the bodies, she concluded that they were struck by a blade, a katana to be exact.

_'Maybe the lawmen of this place did this._' said the Shinigami Tayou to herself, referring to the Shinsengumi.

Suddenly, she saw something moving. It was an Amanto who was struggling to crawl away from the piles of dead and motionless bodies.

"HEY YOU!" she called as she approached the struggling creature.

"Tell me, who did this?"

The Amanto looked up and saw a beautiful woman in front of her. Grateful to see such a sight, The Amanto, with all the strength left in his body answered.

"Shi… Shi… Shiro… Ya… Sha…"

Hearing the name gave her a cold chill on her spine. She started to get nervous. That name was something that she just discovered recently. It was a name that was given to Gintoki during his times at the war. He was also the last person she would've ever thought who could've done such a thing.

One man couldn't do that much damage by himself, let alone leave those kinds of wounds onto them. She can say this because every fight that she was with him, he always uses a bokuto, so it was impossible or was it? After all, he was able to impale a Naraku henchman when they invaded the palace. But still she wondered.

"Where are they now?"

"Pi… Pier…" With that, the creature drew in his last breath and eventually died.

Having this new information learned, Tsukuyo layed left the creature and went back on the truck.

"So what happened inside?" asked the man.

"Everyone there was dead." explained the Shinigami Tayou in a dead serious way.

"WHAT!" the two asked in sync.

"Never mind that" she stated. "We've got to get to the pier of Edo quickly."

Hearing her worried tone, the two did not bother to ask any more questions and headed towards the pier.

* * *

An hour has passed since they left the warehouse and arrived at the pier to the location of the ship, following the Amanto's directions. Once they saw the ship, they were certain that it was the Kiheitai's.

Leaving Elizabeth inside the truck with to look after the Amanto for a while, Gintoki, and Katsura went to the direction of the ship.

The whole pier was covered with mist due to the cold night, making it harder for them to see. While they were walking along the side of the ship, looking for an entry, thin strings of steel suddenly wrapped around their bodies, disabling their movement.

The two instinctively struggled to get out of the bind that they were in. But, as they struggled harder, the strings coiled tighter. Gintoki knew this move. Only one person can do this technique since he has been under it before.

"DON'T MOVE!" He yelled out to Katsura, stopping him in his tracks. "IT WILL RIP YOUR FLESH IF YOU CONTINUE TO STRUGGLE!"

Complying with what his permed friend had said, Katsura stopped his movements and stood still. Suddenly, they a familiar figure, walking through the mist, headed to their direction.

"Well, well" began by a male voice. "Look who's here. If it isn't Shinsuke – sama's former comrades, Koutaro Katsura and Sakata Gintoki. What brings you here this late?"

"Tch! Back atcha' Bakasugi's lap dog." spat Gintoki.

"I think you already know the answer to that since you've come to this secluded place."

"We may know what is being loaded in your ship, but we still don't know what's his purpose is for those."

"I'm sorry but I feel that low lives like you are not worthy to hear anything about Shunsuke – sama's plans.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY PUNK!?" yelled Gintoki who was eager to give the spiky haired man a piece of his mind. But the strings only tighten, cutting his arms to a bloody pulp.

"I would suggest that you stop struggling," interrupted Bansai. "I've reinforced the strings on my Shamisen since our last encounter so that you wouldn't break it that easily again. This time, if you continue on fighting against it, it will slice up your body."

With his patience already running thin, the permed samurai gritted his teeth, eager to get his hands on his former friend's lackey. His expression only placed a smile on Bansai's face as he enjoys the situation their currently at.

"Hmph. Did you really think we would come here without back up?" confidently stated Katsura.

"Oh? Did you mean this?" With a snap of Bansai's finger, a group of Amantos came out of the mist, holding a tied up Elizabeth while one of them supported their fallen comrade to stand up. They then threw him / her together with his two companions.

"ELIZABETH!" yelled the Renho's partner.

"Oh and before I forget, there are some guys who wanted to get back on you for what you did with their companions at the warehouse."

Suddenly, sets of glowing eyes started popping out from the mist accompanied by grunts and chuckles. Groups of Amantos were slowly swarming around the two.

"I guess this is the part where I say farewell. I'll make sure that Shinsukue – sama visits your graves regularly."

Given the signal to go, the Amantos were about to charge in front when a rain of kunais suddenly descended upon on them, stopping everyone on their tracks.

Bansai looked to the direction where the kunai came from and saw two kunoichis standing on the roof of a warehouse. What surprised him though was that the two samurai are now free from his strings due to the kunai barrage.

Apparently, they were aimed exactly to his strings to break them apart. Though he knew that a single attack can only do minimal damage to it, the repeated process of it hitting the strands combined with its rapid release could eventually break them.

The two Hyakka superiors descended upon the two samurai and the Renho, joining their party.

"Hmph, you just can't stay off my business can you?" spat out Gintoki.

"Fool! It should be me tellin' you that! And by the way, yer' welcome." said Tsukuyo sarcastically.

"Tch. I didn't need your help. I got everything under control."

"Oh really, because the last time I checked, ya' were about to get impaled by those spear chargin' freaks and you were lookin' like a sissy girl."

"NAN DATTE!?"

"OI!" yelled out Saya. "Could you save your lover's quarrel for later? We kind of have something more important going on here."

"A lover's quarrel you say?" butted Katsura in. "Oi Gintoki, we're discussing about this later after we're done with these scum."

"WE ARE NOT HAVING A LOVER'S QUARREL!" yelled the two in unison.

* * *

**CLASS 3 – Z: GINPACHI SENSEI SEGMENT**

* * *

**?**: AHAHAHA Konnichiwa mina. Ginpachi Sensei is out today, because of some errands to do. So I'll be you're substitute for today. I'm Sakamoto – sensei. My subject is marketing and math so I don't know why they put me here. AHAHAHA AHAHA AHA!

**Mutsu**: You're laugh sure is annoying Sensei.

**Sakamoto:** Aww… cut me some slack. My laughter is my life you see…

**Mitsuba:** By the way sensei, where is Tsukkichi – Sensei?"

**Sakamoto**: She's also out doing errands.

Class started to mumble and whisper with each other.

**Sakamoto**: Anyway, enough of that, let's get to business. Any questions from the class? Yes Kagura.

**Kagura**: Did I found Gin – chan's letter – aru?

**Sakamoto:** Yes you did and Shinpachi even came back to the house later that afternoon.

**Shinpachi**: Then why wasn't that mentioned in the chapter Sensei?

**Sakamoto**: Uhm… 1 plus 1 equals 2? (got suddenly hit by a book)

**Mutsu**: This is not Math Sensei.

**Sakamoto**: AHAHAHA! Sorry for that! But I can't answer that.

**Mutsu**: Worthless…

**Sakamoto**: Any other questions? Yes Hasegawa… And ehrm… is that your uniform?

**MADAO**: Yes Sensei. I made it myself. It's made out of cardboard because I cannot afford a set. It's called a School CardNiform.

**Sakamoto**: Oookkaayyy. What's your question?

**MADAO**: Can I try your glasses on?

**Sakamoto**: But you already have yours.

**MADAO**: I just wanna try them on Sensei. They look so cool.

**Everyone**: NO IT'S NOT!

**Sakamoto**: Come on minna, My glasses are cool. Anyway here you go.

As Sakamoto removes his glasses, The girls started screaming when they saw how good looking he was without those glasses.

**Mitsuba**: Mutsu – chan, are you blushing?

**Mutsu**: N… no… I'm not…"

**Mitsuba**: Yes you are… Your face is so pink. Don't tell me you have a crush on Sensei?"

**Mutsu**: … n… n… NO WAY! WHY WOULD I HAVE A CRUSH ON THAT SORRY EXCUSE OF A TEACHER!?

**Katusra**: Hmm… Mutsu – dono has a crush on Sakamoto –Sensei? Wow, I didn't thought that are the loud types are your type.

**Mutsu**: GO TO HELL YOU BASTARD! (throws a book on Katsura but misses and hits Sakamoto – Sensei instead)

**Sakamoto**: I think it's a good idea to dismiss the class now…

**Katsura**: Rate and Review Minna and remember… Joui ga Joy… Joy ga JOOUUII! (gets hit by a book by Mutsu)

* * *

**A/N: Phew finally done with this chapter. Got to admit though, this chapter was a pain for me to write coz of writer's block thingy here and there. Anyway I would like to give my biggest appreciation to virctriqa for letting me borrow some scenes from her fanfic "Once Upon A Time On the Red District Town" I must say that like her, that was my initial reaction when I first read about that in the Kurokono Arc. **

**So next chapter, the fight with Bansai and co. continues and I'll give out another GinTsu moment. Probably the last chapter for the Arc in my fic as well.**

** BTW, speaking of GinTsu, I just found my OTP song for them and that is Nice Piece of Art by FM Static. I don't know which between them the song describes best. For me it's Tsukki **

** Anyway, hope you enjoy and don't forget to Review guys. **


	6. Sometimes a Grenade Goes Boom

**A/N: **_So this is the continuation of the confrontation between Bansai's Group and Gintoki's. Hope that I somehow managed to make some decent fight scenes since this is the first time I've done one. Hopefully it doesn't suck that bad. Thanks so much to __**Kurasuchi, Generation Zero, Sakata – san, rinoaterra, Silent Reader 6100 and a guest for reviewing last time. Thanks a bunch. I totally appreciated it.**_

* * *

**CHAPTER 6: Sometimes a Grenade Goes Boom, Sometimes It Just Goes Poof**

* * *

The five created a two and three person, back to back formation with Gintoki and Tsukuyo at one end and Katsura, Elizabeth and Saya at the other, setting their eyes at all possible entry of attacks. Gripping their weapons tightly, the five prepared themselves at the oncoming attack.

With the extension of Bansai's arm, the Amantos charged in with full force. Using the narrow path of the pier to their advantage, the first waves of the group were easily pinned down by the barrages of _kunais_ thrown by Tsukuyo and Saya while the two samurais and the Renho stood back.

It was like a double ended funnel method where the Amantos were clustered from behind and their numbers decrease as they get nearer to the group. But because of the sheer number of the creatures rushing at them, it didn't take long for them to lessen the distance enough for the long ranged attacks to be useless.

This was the time that the two samurais and the Renho where waiting for. With a slash of their _bokuto_, _katana_ and sign board respectively, they were easily able to dispose of the first rows of Amantos. With that, the two kunoichi switched to their short ranged _tantos_ **(a short blade that is a common weapons for shinobis)** and joined the fray.

One by one, they cut down through the sea of Amantos while dodging and blocking the oncoming attacks at the same time. In the middle of the chaotic crowd, Tsukuyo suddenly noticed something.

The so called "Deaf Man" was turning back, heading towards the direction of the ship. Not wanting the 'master mind' of the operation that started in Yoshiwara to get away, the Shinigami Tayou, hurriedly cut her way through, hoping to catch the said man in time.

Seeing the change in her pace and the separation that she was having, Gintoki couldn't help but wonder what was causing it. He knew that she wasn't the type of person who rushes things especially when it comes into fighting.

"Oi Tsukki, slow down and stay close." he called out but she didn't pay any attention to it as she continued her quick killings of the Amantos.

The next thing he knew, there was a good 5 meters separating her from the rest of them and counting. Worried, Gintoki quicken his pace as well, trying to catch up with the Shinigami Tayou. But after a couple of meters, things started to get harder for him.

Due to the wounds that his arms sustained earlier, the pain started to kick in and his reflexes started to slow down. Because of that, his enemies landed some attacks on him. Some were caused by blades, opening new cuts on his body, resulting into an increase in blood loss.

His knees started to wobble and the grip on his_ bokuto_ started to loosen up. Seeing this as an opening they need to finally finish off the samurai, two spear - wielding Amantos moved in and swung their weapons, targeting his neck.

Suddenly, his body crouched down on its own and landed on his knee, evading the two blades. Then, he started feeling a bit hazy. Now the continuous flow of blood coming out of his wounds is starting to take effect.

'_Damn it! This is no good. If I don't do anything soon, I'll be a goner for sure.'_ said the samurai to himself.

He looked over his shoulder to see how his other companions were fairing compared to him. To his dismay, they too were looking to be in a tight situation as well. He tried to stand back up but his body won't let him.

He didn't know how deep his wounds were or how large were they. But one thing's for sure, he knew that he was in trouble. If he wasn't able to get back up, he was going to get killed and to make matters worse, the two spear wielding Amantos were about to attack again.

'_Come on you useless bum, MOVE!'_

Then, a memory that was supposed to be buried deep within his mind that somehow in some way resurfaced and flashed before his eyes...

_'Gintoki…I'm leaving things in your care… Our comrades… Everyone… Please protect them for me okay? Let's make it a promise…'_

It was a promise that he made long ago with the most important person in his life… A commitment that he carried his whole life up to now… A vow that he had broken once before… A promise he swore to himself to never break again…

Gripping his _bokuto_, he forced himself up, quickly deflected the blows and dispatching the two with ease. His eyes shot open, placing a piercing glare right into the eyes of his enemies. The Amantos suddenly felt a familiar chill down on their spines. They knew this fear. Some of them have felt it before while some of them had heard stories about it. They were now facing the awakened Shiroyasha.

Before they could even move a muscle, the demon suddenly vanished from their sights. The next thing they knew, they saw a _bokuto_ impaled right through one of their comrades. But he wasn't there.

Suddenly, one of them pointed up to the sky and everyone followed. There they saw the Shiroyasha at the center of the full moon, gripping a _katana_ from his from his waist that he grabbed from his foe.

With sheer force, Gintoki dropped down and dispatched every Amanto in front that was surrounding him with one slash. He then picked up his _bokuto_ and changed his stance into a two sword style.

Panicking at the situation, everyone from the group of that end all came in to him, attempting to use the numbers game and maybe somehow, one of them could get a lucky strike on him. Though some had actually managed to land shallow cuts, kicks and punches at him, it was not enough to bring the Shiroyasha down and sure enough, they all paid the price for it.

Noticing the sudden decrease of Amantos and the murmurs that were buzzing around, Katsura and Saya couldn't help wonder what was happening. But one thing was clear in the Joui leader's ears and that was the sentence, 'The Shiroyasha is on a rampage'.

"Katsura – san," asked the teenage kunoichi while still engaging the enemy. "What do you think is happening over there?"

"It appears that Gintoki started to take this little activity of ours a little bit seriously."

"Eh? What does that mean?"

"It means that, he wants to finish this quickly. Heh, I'd feel sorry for anybody who will be standing in his way."

"Do you think Kashira is alright out there?"

"Do not worry Saya – dono. Gintoki might be an idiot, but if there's one thing that I commend him for, it's his dedication to protect his friends and allies." explained Katsura.

* * *

After cutting her way through the somewhat endless sea of enemies, Tsukuyo had eventually reached a clearing and had a clear image of the man that she was pursuing.

Using her speed to her advantage, she finally caught up to Bansai, and was close enough for the Shinigami Tayou to throw a kunai at him, attempting to slow the man down.

Aware of the presence of the kunoichi, Bansai was able to dodge the oncoming attack. Tsukuyo tried once more, hoping for a kunai to hit its mark. Although he was able to dodge them all, it only made her to try once again with each kunai getting closer and closer to him even though he continued on dodging them.

Agitated, Bansai pivoted around, unsheathed his sword and deflected the kunais that were headed towards his way, facing Tsukuyo head on.

Noticing the rushing Bansai, Tsukuyo quickly switched to her _tanto_ and clashed steel with the spiky haired man. The two quickly separated just as they met, having a stalemate.

"Ahh… Just what I expect from the guardian of Yoshiwara." greeted the blue haired musician. "Indeed you are strong just like he had said."

Tsukuyo was somehow dumbfounded by the statement that was given out by her adversary. Who was he referring to?

"The 'ell are ya talkin' 'bout criminal?"

"My, my, being called a criminal is a bit cruel? Don't you think, miss?" mocked Bansai. "Besides, you should be honoured for your strength to be recognized by the Admiral of the recently liberated Harusame space pirates' leader."

"Stop talkin' rubbish. I don't care who that person is."

"Oh really? Not even if that person was the rightful ruler of Yoshiwara?"

That statement had shocked her and made her took a few steps back. She knows nothing about another ruler in Yoshiwara after Houssen. As far as she knows, it was Hinowa who was calling the shots around the Red Light District with the Hyakka keeping the place secured.

"I see that you are bewildered by that enlightenment." said Bansai, interrupting her thoughts.

"That's nonsence. Yoshiwara has no ruler."

"But there is. In fact, he knows about your fight together with the Shiroyasha against the almighty Houssen. He was tru—"

"'NUF TALK!" shouted Tsukuyo, interrupting the man. "Let's finish this here and now. I'm goin' to make ya' pay for the crimes that you've committed."

Using her speed and agility, she rushed in towards Bansai, gripping her _tanto_ tightly. The alleged negotiator of the Kiheitai barely evaded the attack, leaving a small cut on his arm. Tsukuyo rushed in again. This time though, he used the strings of his _shamisen_ to intercept the attack.

But, she had already saw how it was used, heck she even considered it as inferior to the kind of strings or more specifically webs that his late shishou, Jiraiya had used before. To her, it was like a slow – mo movie that she could easily see. At a split second, she grabbed her other _tanto_ from behind and blocked the strings with ease.

Little did she know that her foe was expecting this to happen as he landed a kick on her stomach that sent her flying by a few meters away. Because of her athleticism, Tsukuyo managed to land on her feet, lessening the damage that she was supposed to have or so she thought.

Just when she landed, her mid - section started to throb, causing her to clutch it with her left arm. But it was not the time for her to lie helplessly. Soon enough, she got back to her feet and rushed in once again.

This time her pace was slower than before. Bansai thought that the last kick probably took a lot from her, causing her to slow down. But that wasn't the case. Instead of just passing through with one attack, Tsukuyo engaged him in a melee fight.

Bansai tried his best to block and dodge the attacks of the Shinigami Tayou. Although it seems like with each attack that she throws, the faster she gets. Eventually, Tsukuyo had managed to land some decent kicks and scratches into him.

The musician started to tire a bit and his wounds and bruises had started to hurt. Fortunately for him his adversary had also started to tire out snf from the looks of her, she looked more worn out than he was as her breathing rate had started to increase.

Tsukuyo was panting hard. She knew that her last onslaught had taken a lot from her. Looking at her foe, she thinks that he still has a lot left in him even though the blows that he had received earlier must have weakened him by now.

She must finish him quickly or else she might find herself on the edge of his _katana_. Without a second thought, the Shinigami Tayou charged at the blue haired man. Once again, they traded blows and dodged each other's attacks.

That was until they clashed their weapons again with one another. Thinking that it was going to be another stalemate, Tsukuyo held her ground and waited for the samurai to make his move. Or so she thought as a grin formed in the face of her foe.

Using his strength, Bansai thrust his _katana_ upward, dismantling the intertwining of their weapons that caught the kunoichi off guard. He then rammed his shoulder on her chin, stunning her momentarily.

Taking advantage of the stuation, Bansai quickly kicked one of her hands causing Tsukuyo to drop on of her _tantos_. In response, the Shinigami Tayou instinctively crouched down and swept the man's leg with her own.

Outbalanced, Bansai fell down on his back, crashing through his _shamisen_. The loud crackling noise was enough to tell him that it was already broken.

With her foe on his back, Tsukuyo dashed towards him and used her momentum to leap into the air. Putting her blade in front, she dived down the man, attempting to slash through his chest. Unfortunately for her, Bansai saw this coming and rolled out of the way.

Anticipating her next move, the deaf man lunged his foot forward and just like he planned, it hit Tsukuyo's shin, causing her to drop down dorsally and dropping her remaining _tanto_ in the sea.

Instinctively, she rolled forward to get back on her base. She then reached for her _kunais_ from her obi, but failed to find any. Apparently, she had used all of it while taking down the Amantos on her way here.

She was now unarmed. To make matters worse, it seemed like her adversary had noticed it as well.

"It seems that you're out of toys miss. I suggest that you surrender now and leave me be because I am not responsible for what might happen in case you decide otherwise." proposed the negotiator.

"'Yer' offer does sound temptin'. However, I still have an obligation to Yoshiwara to do whatever it takes to subdue criminals like you even if it costs me ma' life."

Having no weapons in her arsenal, Tsukuyo had no other choice but to opt for hand to hand combat. Just like before, she used her speed and agility to her favour to catch him off guard, this time though, she used a variety of kicks and punches to throw at him.

Even though, this was the first time that Bansai saw a diverse combination, he managed to easily dodge and block all of her attacks seeing that she was beginning to become desperate. Then came a kick that he blocked with his hand and grabbed her leg to offset her balance.

But Tsukuyo managed to turn that situation onto her advantage as she used his arm to give herself a boost to backflip behind him. Using the momentum of the flip, she grabbed hold of his back with her legs and attempted a sleeper hold on him.

Having targeted his coronal area, Bansai started to feel its effects as his vision started to blur and his body to become numb as he landed on a knee because of the lack of blood and oxygen going to his head. Panicking, he thought of the only logical plan to get out of this. He used the remaining ounce of his strength to stand up together with the kunoichi and rammed her back against nearby container unit.

It seemed to be effective as he could feel her hold starting to loosen up. He repeated it again and again until she finally let go and collapsed down with her back against the containers.

He then placed his foot near her neck, choking and pinning her against the steel to immobilize and weaken her at the same time. Gasping for air, Tsukuyo tried her best to push away her foe's foot but to no avail. She was too weak and her air supply is rapidly decreasing by the second.

"It looks like this the end of our little game miss." greeted Bansai. "As much as I like to continue this, I still have a delivery to make that couldn't be late. So, I bid y—AHHH!"

Out of desperation, and probably her one and only option, Tsukuyo used her leg to kick Bansai into his nether regions, dropping him on his knees. She took this opportunity to roll away and catch her breath. She then stood back up, entering her stance once again, panting harder than ever. But before she could even move a muscle, she saw someone standing beside her.

Seeing the familiar white _yukuta _that was presently drenched in blood, not to mention that distinctive silver perm, Tsukuyo knew exactly who she was facing.

"Gi… GINTOKI!?" she called out in confusion about his presence. "Wha' 'ja think 'yer doing here fool? Stay out of this."

Despite her plea, Gintoki ignored her and slowly moved forward, glaring at the other samurai who was still at his knees. Looking at his face, Tsukuyo noted that had a dead serious look, something that is rarely seen in him. She had saw this side of him before during the time that he faced that Naraku assassin. The way his eyes looked was like of those of an actual demon.

She did not want to admit it but, it did scare her. She was used on seeing a goofy, happy – go lucky face of an idiot whom she respected and admired as a friend and a fellow warrior. So for her to see him in that expression just sends chills down her spine. So, she decided it was best to take a step back and let him handle things for now.

Eventually Bansai got back up to his feet and was surprised on the look of his new adversary.

"Hmph… It looks like things got a little more interesting…" greeted the negotiator to his newly arrived foe. "Care to start our rema—"

His greeting was cut short when his face was hit by a blood – stained _bokuto_, sending him crashing through one of the containers. Slowly, Bansai stood up back onto his feet and entered his stance once more as he spat out a bit of blood.

"I'll take that as a yes."

Placing his _katana_ close to his waist, Bansai changed his stance into a more defensive oriented style. Heeding no attention to whatever he was planning, Gintoki charged in with his _bokuto_ in front.

"Be careful Gintoki!" yelled Tsukuyo. "He's tryin' to anticipate yer' move and counter it afterwards."

However, Gintoki continued his run, ignoring the warnings of the kunoichi that left a grin on the face of the spiky haired samurai. In a split second, Bansai was able to unleash an attack that passed through the other samurai as he quickly crouched down to evade it. But the force alone of the attack was able to cut through the corner of a steel container.

Anticipating that Gintoki would attempt to attack his weak side because of the attack earlier, he quickly hopped back a step and unleashed another one. This time though, the permed samurai was able to block it with his weapon. From there, Bansai went on the offensive launching one slash after the other while Gintoki continues to block them.

Finally after all the attacks that he had thrown, he managed to offset the Shiroyasha's defences and slashed through his torso. Blood immediately started seeping out of it, making the Shinigami Tayou worry.

But what happened next incredibly shocked both Bansai and Tsukuyo. Instead of clutching his torso in pain, Gintoki charged towards him and whipped Bansai in the face with his _bokuto_.

As he was about to fall, Gintoki grabbed the collar of his shirt and whacked him in the head left and right repeatedly and finished him off with a head butt. Gingerly, the man tried to get back up on his feet again but then, he felt a sharp pain in his left shoulder.

He found out that it had been stabbed by the Shiroyasha with his _bokuto_, dislocating the head of the _humerus_ **(this is basically the ball of the shoulder itself)** from its socket and pinning him against the steel container. Slowly, Gintoki removed the wooden sword causing him to wince in pain. Once it was out, he pulled it back towards him until the edge of the _bokuto_ was near his face with the point aimed at the forehead of his foe.

Gintoki was about to finish him off but before he could even move and inch of his arm forward, he heard a familiar voice from inside his mind.

'_Gintoki… you must understand. A blade is not to cut down your enemies, nor is it used to cut away your weakness. A sword is not used to protect your body… A sword is meant for protecting your soul.'_

Remembering what his late sensei had taught him when they first met, the permed samurai, slowly lowered his weapon as he distanced himself from the injured samurai. He turned around and began walking away.

Seeing the permed samurai distancing himself, Bansai couldn't help but let out a small chuckle at him.

"What's wrong Shiroyasha? Don't you have the guts to finish off an opponent? How disappointing… It's no wonder why Shinsuke – sama turned his back away from you. You lack the strength to get things done."

"Well, sorry if I don't have your foolish leader's little fetish for destruction." he explained. "Besides, it's not my call to end that miserable life of yours"

He then turned his attention to Tsukuyo and threw her one of her_ kunais_ that he managed to pick up on his way.

"It's hers."

Catching the _kunai_, she turned her attention to the said man and saw him gave her a small smile before he turned around. After that, he immediately clutched his stomach to where he was cut and silently gritted his teeth in pain.

With his situation unnoticed by her, Tsukuyo set her sights at the other injured samurai who was clutching his shoulder under his now unbuttoned shirt.

"Ti's true that whatcha' did originated in Yoshiwara. However, it was because of 'yer activities that it had escalated all over Edo as well. So, as far as jurisdiction is considered, this falls under Edo's laws and is best if we leave you with the authorities here to receive whatever judgement they may pass onto you." explained the Shinigami Tayou as she placed her _kunai_ back to the sleeve of her kimono.

However Bansai had again chuckled to the remarks that were given to him.

"I must say, that idea is a good one. However, just like I told you earlier, there's a delivery that I need to make in time and I'm afraid that being brought to the police factions of Edo, especially the Shinsengumi would only slow me down."

"The 'ell ya' mean?"

By the sound of her voice, Gintoki knew something's wrong and so he turned around to see what was happening. His eyes shot open when he saw Bansai removed his arm from his shirt and suddenly threw a couple of grenades in front of Tsukuyo.

Without thinking, he ran quickly in front of her, tackling her down in the process. He then held her tightly between his arms, shielding her from the possible blast. But, these weren't any normal grenades.

When they exploded, it didn't blow up the surroundings like a normal grenade would. Instead, it created a deafening screech and emitted a luminous, blinding light, blocking both the sight and the hearing of the people who are close to it. Those were flash bangs.

A couple of minutes had passed since the explosions. By then, their senses had final returned. As she opened her eyes, the first thing that Tsukuyo saw was Gintoki's face which was just inches away from hers.

Suddenly her face turned deeply red and she started to feel a little bit weird inside. Embarrassed with their current position, she immediately pushed him away and moved away from the samurai.

"Wha… Whadya' think yer doin' fool?" she spat. "Were ya' plannin' on getting' 'yerself killed?"

Her sudden outburst had somehow managed to get his senses back, however it also made him confused. "What are you talking about? It didn't blow up didn't it?"

"Well wha' if it did huh? Wha' if those were grenades?"

Her tone of questioning was now starting to annoy him. For whatever reason that he didn't know, she was angry at him. "WHAT IF'S? YOU'RE BASING THIS ON WHAT IF'S? I saved your life you damn woman. Be grateful that I did at least."

"I didn't ask for yer' help in the first place and I sure did not asked ya' to do such a reckless thang' like shielding me from those explosives!"

"Look who's talking? You were the one who recklessly went solo a while ago. As a matter of fact, none of this would've happened if you just stick with us."

"I toldja' before numbskull, I didn't asked for yer help. This is a problem that started in Yoshi—"

"YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THIS!" he shouted, cutting her off and leaving her dumbfounded.

"Whadya' mean I don't know anythin' about this?" she asked. Then something that their opposition from a while ago came into her mind.

'_Besides, you should be honoured for your strength to be recognized by the Admiral of the recently liberated Harusame space pirates… Not even if I told you that he is the rightful ruler of Yoshiwara? But there is. In fact, he knows about your fight together with the Shiroyasha against the almighty Houssen…'_

At the thought of the criminal that they were supposed to turn over to the authorities a while ago, Tsukuyo looked back at the place where he was lying earlier, but now he was gone.

Suddenly, the engine of the ship started and not a minute later, it began to depart. It was then that they both realized that Bansai managed to escape when he used the flash bangs as a distraction. Moments later, the ship gained enough speed and lifted off the sea and setting course towards the outer space.

Knowing that they couldn't do anything about it, Tsukuyo decided to ask Gintoki on what he knows about the 'rightful ruler of Yoshiwara'. But before she could utter a single word, Gintoki suddenly fell on his knee and clutched his stomach, gritting his teeth in pain.

"Oi Gintoki, wha's wrong widja'?"

She then noticed the blood stain on his _yukuta_ growing in diameter and eventually seeps out from his hand. It was the wound that he received earlier from Bansai's attack. Apart from it, blood also started to drip from both of his shoulders and his back. Tsukuyo didn't know that his condition was that bad considering that he didn't heed any attention to it while he was fighting.

It was probably because of the adrenaline rush that he was able to endure the pain a while ago. Now that it was gone, the pain started to rush into his brain, resulting into the situation that he was currently in.

"No… nothing… I'm alright… It's just a scratch. Don't worry about me" said Gintoki, trying to mask the pain that he was currently experiencing with a contented face.

"Ya' fool, stop talkin' garbage. It's obvious that yer' hu—"

"I SAID I'M FINE!" he yelled to prove his point.

But, no matter how stubborn he was or how much he tries to deny his pain, it wasn't enough for Tsukuyo to accept it and leave him like that. Without another word, she lifted his left arm and placed it on the back of her neck, assisting him back to his feet which really shocked him.

"(Sigh) When will ya' ever grow up?" she began. "Stop actin' like an immature boy who doesn't wanna' cry in front of others just because he doesn't wanna' show any kind of weakness."

"Oi oi… since when did you learn… how to give out… stupid lectures like that? And by the way, there's… now way in hell… that I will cry… just because of this…" he rebutted.

"That's not what I mean Baka. I mean, don't hesitate to ask for help if you need to because you have friends and comrades who will gladly lend you a hand or two. Isn't that what you told me before?" reminded Tsukuyo as they started to walk back to where their friends were. "And stop talkin' by the way. Conserve yer' energy will ya'?

Realizing that he was actually doing the opposite thing that he advised Tsukuyo some time ago, he couldn't help but let out a small smile and be impressed with the said woman that she still remembers his words and even managed to use it on him.

Suddenly, Tsukuyo turned her attention back to the injured man beside her and caught him smiling at her, causing her face to turn pink and feel that weird warm feeling inside again. Not wanting him to see her like that, she turned her face away as they continued to walk at the docks.

* * *

Mmoments later, they arrived to where the fight started but no human nor Renho were there. It was only filled with bodies of dead Amantos.

"Ya' don't think that they didn't make it. Didja'?" asked Tsukuyo who was starting to get worried for their other companions.

"Don't worry, Zura is with them. That guy is a tough bastard and couldn't be taken down easily. Take it from me." he explained, assuring her that everything was going to be okay.

Trusting the samurai's words, Tsukuyo nodded at him and they continued on. She decided to go to where their asset was parked, thinking that maybe Saya dragged Katsura and Elizabeth with her to rest while they wait for them.

* * *

Minutes later, they reached the truck just outside the pier and just like Tsukuyo have guessed, their friends were all there. Saya was constantly pacing in front of the truck, worrying about her Kashira. Their asset was sleeping in the driver's seat, Katsura was toying around with Gintoki's scooter, which they got from their previous truck that was trashed earlier by the Amantos, checking if he had some stuff that was lodged on its compartment like food or something after it was loaded on the back and Elizabeth was busy playing with his Bentendo 3D - TS **(parody of Nintendo 3DS) ** to pass the time.

Suddenly, Saya stopped her pacing as she notices her Kashira with a bloody permed samurai on her shoulders walking towards them.

"KASHIRA!" she yelled, dashing off to her side with a worried look.

Once she got a glimpse of her injured companion, she quickly took his free arm and placed it on the back of her neck initiatively. Gintoki then noticed the youthful kunoichi on his right side, helping Tsukuyo in supporting him. To him, she was like a younger version of her master minus her cold stoic personality and her occasional _kunai_ throwings at his head.

"Tch, let me guess, your master thought you to help out a wounded person once you saw one without question didn't she?" asked Gintoki.

The teenager nodded her head in affirmation as they continued walking towards the truck. Once they reached the vehicle, they carefully lay him down at the back, just beside his scooter. Seeing a pile of old cardboards at the back, Tsukuyo decided to compile and fold them and placed it on Gintoki's head to act as a pillow.

After that, Tsukuyo asked her apprentice to look after him for the meantime, while she discussed something with their driver.

Seconds after she was gone, Katsura joined the teenager to check on his long time friend. Seeing the situation he was in made him chuckle a bit.

"Oi Gintoki, what happened to you? It looks like you let every Amanto cut through you like a roast feast." mocked the Joui leader.

"Could you please shut up for now Zura?" he rebutted. "Hearing your voice is making me dizzier."

"Zura ja nai, Katsura da. Has the feared Shiroyasha finally grown weak throughout these years that he let a lady like Tsukuyo – dono carry him like a sack of potatoes when it should have been the other way aro—"

His speech was suddenly cut short when his face had met the cold hard plating of Gintoki's helmet again that the injured samurai threw at him in annoyance.

"I SAID SHUT UP DIDN'T I?"

"That's right Katsura – sama, give Sakata – sama a break." defended Saya. "He's been through a lot tonight. After all, he did take out all those freaks earlier and made it easier for the three of us. And I honestly think that he could even probably take out every one of them if he wanted to, am I right?"

"Y… yes… he… can…"grumbled the downed man as he raised his thumb in the air. **(A parody of Barack Obama's speech that Katsura did on the earlier chapters of the series as Ill Smith)**

After a while, Tsukuyo came back. Apparently, she asked the 'driver' to take them to Yorozuya Gin – chan to treat him there. **(This is a thing that I've noticed from the aftermath of every major fight that he had. Instead of resting at the hospital, he's always seen lying down on his bedroom or just seen walking around Kabuki – chou with his injuries already treated.)**

She also asked Katsura to sit at the shotgun of the truck to point out the directions to the driver since he was the one who knows the ways around Edo, particularly Kabuki – chou and which roads or streets to take to get there at the least amount of time while the three of them watch over Gintoki at the back. Katsura nodded his head in affirmation with her plan. With everything settled, they went off.

* * *

While Katsura guides the driver to their destination, at the back, Tsukuyo asked Gintoki if she could give him some pre mediated procedures just to keep the blood from flowing any further while Saya had fallen asleep and Elizabeth was still playing with his Bentendo 3D TS at the side.

With his permission, she carefully pulled down the other sleeve of his _yukuta_ and pulled down the zipper of his shirt. Unfortunately, there were more wounds covering his body than she initially thought.

But on the bright side, most of them were just shallow cuts that she didn't need to worry about for now. There were just three wounds that were spilling a lot of blood and those were the wounds on both of his arms which were caused the binding of the steel strings and the cut that he obtained during the fight with Bansai in the mid section. But, it was not deep enough to affect the organs sheltered inside. Still, the blood continued to clot.

Grabbing her _kunai_ that Gintoki gave her back a while ago, she cut the sleeve of her _kimono_, folded it into a square like figure and placed it on the wound. She then cut one of the sleeves of his _yukuta _and wrapped it in around it, securing the first piece in place. After that, she placed her hands and applied a significant amount of pressure to prevent further clotting for the meantime.

"Oi, oi" he interrupted. "You better replace that coz I sure does hell don't have the money right now to buy a new one."

"Baka, just stitch it with a needle and a thread or just use a sewin' machine to fix it."

"Wait, that works?"

"Of course it does. Are you that kind of a fool to not know it?"

The samurai nodded making Tsukuyo place one of her hands on her forehead in disbelief. Was that person really idiotic or just pretending to be one to get a new yukuta? Those thoughts went through her mind.

"I suppose ya' don't know how to stitch either doncha'?"

"Nope, that's just a job for girly girls like you."

"WHO'RYA' CALLIN' A GIRLY GIRL YA' STUPID PERM?" she yelled, applying more pressure on the part she was pressing down causing the samurai to yelp in pain.

"It was just a joke… For Pete's sake woman, are you really going squeeze all my blood out just for something shallow like that?"

"We… well… ya' started it." she said, blaming Gintoki for it.

"I started it? Oh that's just great. May I remind you that you were the one who recklessly went solo like some big shot who thinks she can take on anything in the world?"

"Damn fool, may I remind ya' that ya' were' the one who RECKLESSLY interfered with ma' fight thus earning you that cut in the process?" she rebutted.

"As far as I can remember, you were already unarmed back there and I'm pretty sure you were about to get beat. Oh yeah, you're welcome by the way for me coming to your rescue and almost saving your life earlier."

"Who said that I needed rescuin'? I could've still beaten that guy if you didn't stuck yer' nose to ma' business and who told you to throw yerself' like that and shield me from those explosives huh? I'm sure I ain't the one who holler' atcha'."

"Tch, ungrateful bitch"

"Weak ass perm"

The exchange between the two went on and on without anyone of them wanting to admit defeat. Unbeknownst to them, the commotion they were making woke up the slumbering teenager. She let out a soft yawn and turned to the direction to the awful noice that woke her up and everybody knows that when a woman's beauty rest is disturbed, expect a storm to descend upon you.

"WILL THE TWO OF YA' JUST SHUDDAP!?" she shouted, alerting the two adults of her presence.  
"I'm tryin' to get sum' shut eyes over 'ere. Can't you wait until we get to Sakata – sama's house? Once we're there you two could continue this at the bedroom."

Everything went silent after Saya's uproar. Alas, everything was peaceful again. She could now go back to her sleep and snooze peacefully, or so she thought. Seconds after shutting her eyes, she felt a foot stomping on her petite structure repeatedly.

It was Tsukuyo beating the hell out of her underling, pissed at the comments that she gave out a while ago.

"WHO THE F*CK ARE YA' TO BOSS ME AROUND HUH? I'M YOUR KASHIRA KONOYAROU! IF YOU WANT SUM' PEACE AND QUIET, HOW ABOUT I JUST BEAT YA' TO DEATH HUH?"

"SOU… SOUMIMASEN KASHIRA… SOUMIMASEN… SOUMIMASEN!" she screamed, begging for Tsukuyo to stop her punishment which she eventually did.

"Way to show that kid of yours to respect her Kashira and the Kabukichou Danna eh Tsukki?" applauded the downed samurai.

Hearing his remarks, she threw her last and only kunai at the head of the already injured Gintoki in annoyance. Realizing what she had done would only worsen his already bad condition, she quickly turned towards him.

Fortunately or rather miraculously for the permed samurai, her kunai missed his head by only a couple of centimeters shy, only grazing on the hair on the side of his ear. Seeing the kunai stuck on the steel wall of the truck, made her feel relieved.

"Thank goodness…" she said to herself, letting out a sigh of relief.

"THANK GOODNESS!?" shouted Gintoki as a vein formed in his forehead in annoyance to her somewhat ironic comment. "YOU ALMOST KILLED ME DAMN BITCH!"

"Be thankful that I missed this time. It's rare for me to ever miss a target, much more a target in close range."

"BE THANKFUL!? WHY I OUGHTA, IF ONLY I CAN ONLY MOVE MY ARMS, I WOULD'VE THROWN THAT KUNAI RIGHT BACK AT YOU!"

"May I remind ya' that yer' not in a position to make threats? You that you still owe me for interfeerin' with ma' business earlier."

"YOU'RE STILL BRINGING UP THAT THING? HOW MANY TIMES WILL YOU BRING BACK THAT SHIT? IF YOU KEEP REPEATING THE SAME TOPIC OVER AND OVER AGAIN, THE VIEWERS WILL BE BORED AND WILL STOP READING!"

Ignoring the outburst of the wounded man, Tsukuyo proceeded back on placing her hands on his wounded torso, applying pressure once more instead. Gintoki was somewhat dumbfounded by her recent action. Normally, she would just argue with him for throwing such a topic or would probably give another _tsukkomi_ to insult him even further.

From there on, everything was silent. Saya had even managed to snooze again since the two adults stopped bickering with each other. Elizabeth had managed to fall asleep as well since his Bentendeo 3D TS ran out of juice. Gintoki too was not spared by the effect of drowsiness, given the fact that he was too fatigued and it was already one in the midnight.

Only Tsukuyo was left awake. Because of the responsibility that she had given herself, she convinced herself to not fall asleep. Although there were the occasional yawns and eye rubbings ,she still did not fall.

Suddenly, the truck hit a bump on the road, throwing the Shinigami Tayou off balance. But because of her training as a kunoichi, her hands quickly reacted, flattening themselves on the floor of the truck to break her fall.

The next thing she knew, her face was dangerously close to Gintoki's as she could feel his warm breath. Instinctively, she rapidly went off of that awkward position and gave some distance away from him. Looking back at the samurai, he seems to be unaffected by the 'accident' and was still deep within his sleep.

Ignoring his annoying loud snoring, Tsukuyo was somewhat put into a trance as she mesmerizes upon the sleeping face of the samurai. He looked so peaceful and vulnerable in his current stature that it seemed that the Gintoki she is facing presently was a whole different person compared to his actively, idiotic self.

She can't help but smile onto the sight that she was staring at. If seeing Gintoki's serious side was rare, this one was like something that happens once in a blue moon. She considers this image of him, something she was sure that she will never ever say to anyone else especially to Hinowa, Saya and Gintoki himself to be 'cute and charming'.

* * *

Moments later, the truck stopped. The doors of the back were opened by Katsura, revealing that they have arrived at Yorozuya Gin – chan in Kabuki – chou. Tsukuyo woke up her sleeping comrades, including Gintoki, informing them that they have reached their destination.

Groggily, Saya, Tsukuyo and Elizabeth got down from the truck while Katsura and the other man aided Gintoki carefully up to his house. Upon arriving at the front, Tsukuyo rang the doorbell.

"Uhm, hello? Kagura – chan, are you awake?" she asked, hoping to somehow reach into her to wake her up.

"Coming." replied a young male's voice instead, followed by a long yawn.

Opening the fusuma was Shinpachi who looked like he just woke up recently since his hair was a bit messed up and he was still in his pajamas. He was also probably expecting for their leader's return since he was normally sleeping at their dojo.

"Tsukuyo – san? What are you doing here? Where's Gin – san?" asked the boy in confusion.

The Shinigami Tayou stepped aside, revealing to him their leader being aided by Katsura and an unfamiliar face and was covered in blood and cuts. The sight of Gintoki was enough to make the teenage boy's eyes shot wide open.

"GIN – SAN!" shouted the worried boy, running to his boss's side. "What happened to him?" he asked.

"He tripped and fell down a flight of stairs." sarcastically said Katsura with his ever unreadable poker face.

"DONDAKE! Nobody gets cuts all over their body by just falling down the stairs."

"Don't worry Shinpachi." gingerly replied the injured samurai. "This is nothing. Zura's right. I just fell down a tall flight of stairs. That's all."

Typical was the first thing that popped up on his mind after listening to Gintoki's words. He always acts that way whenever he was in a dangerous situation like he was right now. Although Shinpachi has still a lot of questions to ask, he decided to drop it for now and let Gintoki's wounds be treated inside.

Tsukuyo, Saya and Elizabeth pushed the furniture aside to make room for the futon that Shinpachi fetch from Gintoki's room and lay it down on the wooden floor. After everything was set, the two men lay the perm samurai down on the futon.

While Shinpachi fetch the medical kit, Tsukuyo talked to their asset outside, thanked him for his help and told him that he has now earned his freedom and can go now if he wanted to. The man was delighted to hear that. He asked her if they wanted a ride back to Yoshiwara before he sets off to his relatives' place somewhere in Edo but she politely refused since she didn't want to burden him any further. And with that, he drove off through the midnight to start a new life of his own. Hopefully, he will not take part into another illegal activity.

Returning back, she noticed that Saya had already fallen asleep on one of the couches to her dismay since she was planning to get back to Yoshiwara afterwards. Katsura and Elizabeth had also fallen asleep against the wall. Who could blame them? They had a busy and tiring night and to top it all off, it was already two in the morning. Her eyes were also on the verge of closing when Shinpachi came back with the medical kit, a towel and a pail of water, making them open up again since she still has one more task to do.

The teenage boy asked Gintoki to roll over to his side so that he could place the towel underneath him. Once it was in place, he and Tsukuyo started cleaning the wounds on his limbs first with a clean rag damped in cold water.

After that, Shinpachi dabbed down the rag on his mid – section where he was cut the worst. Just as the wet cloth or rather the water coming out of it touched his wound, Gintoki winced in pain making the teenage boyback off. Seeing his reaction, Tsukuyo came by his side.

"Just hold it out for a while Gintoki. I know that it's painful but just hold it out for a bit until your wounds are clean."

"Tch… I know that. It's just that I got caught off guard. That's al—EOUCH!" yelped Gintoki in pain as Shinpachi dabbed the cloth yet again on the affected area.

"WHAT THE HELL _MEGANE_! YOU COULD'VE AT LEAST WARNED ME FIRST BEFORE DOING IT AGAIN!"

"Tsukuyo – san's right you know. Just hold it out for a while. You're tougher than this. I heard from Anue – ue that you were silent as a baby when she treated you after you got stabbed by the Benizakura. If I remember correctly, that was way worse compared to this."

"THAT'S BECAUSE I WAS FAST ASLEEP BACK THEN KONOYAROU! Obviously I won't have felt anything ba—AAAHHH!"

This time, it was Tsukuyo who did it, squeezing the rag tightly in annoyance to the continued bickering and whining of the bleater lying on the futon.

"Shinpachi – kun is right. This ain't the time to be complainin' about sum' simple thang' like that. I don't know if you've noticed but it's already past two in the mornin' and I'm already bummed out. Thang's don't go too well if I don't get some shut eyes properly Gintoki."

Looking at her face, he could tell that something bad was bound to happen if he keeps her from her beauty sleep. Probably it will be like her drunken terminator mode only this one will be a drowsy terminator. Not wanting to get beaten up any further, he kept quiet and sucked it up.

What he did next though made the Shinigami Tayou's eyes shot wide open. Gintoki suddenly held her hand, holding it tightly. This made her face flush once again. Embarrassed, she hastily pulled her hand free from his. Luckily though, it seemed like that the two Yorozuya members were already too tired to notice it.

"OI, THE 'ELL WERE YA' DOIN'?" she demanded.

"I need to grip something so that I won't wince or anything and get this over with."

"BA… BAKA! WHY DON'T JUST GRIP THE TOWEL UNDER YOU?"

"It's wet and spread all over the futon, giving me nothing to grip on whatsoever."

Seeing that he has a point, she let him grabbed her hand as Shinpachi continued to clean his wounds. Once all his wounds were all cleaned, Tsukuyo sprayed them with an anti – bacterial chemical so that they won't get infected. Finally, the two covered them with bandages.

Contented with what they accomplished, Shinpachi turned off the lights and sat down in Gintoki's chair, laying his head down the table, giving Tsukuyo the other sofa to sleep on which she gladly accepted. But before she went to sleep, she decided to wait for Gintoki to fall asleep first to ensure her that his condition was already stable. Although, she find it somehow troublesome since it seemed like he was also doing the same thing.

"_Ano… _Gintoki," she began, disrupting the silence surrounding the two of them.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Aren't cha' goin' to sleep yet? It was quite the night after all."

"Well, same goes to you. Are you waiting for me to sleep or something?"

It seemed like she was a bit struck by his question. Did he actually know that he was the reason that was keeping her awake or was just probably coincidental since it was the most obvious reason? Whatever it was, she decided to just let it slip and come clean.

"Hmph. So what if I'm waitin' for ya' damn perm?" she spat.

"Aww… I'm touched. I didn't know that you actually worry about me Tsukki." he sarcastically teased.

"Ba… Baka… It's just that… Shinpachi asked me to look after you until you fall asleep to check if ya'll be alright… Not because I worry about cha' or anythin'"

"Well… don't worry yourself about it. I'll be alright. I had worse before." he assured her. "Tell you what, why don't you lie down the sofa so you can rest already. If you still can't sleep or you're still stubborn enough to wait for me to get a snooze going, talk to me and I'll try to respond if I'm still awake."

"Fine" she said as she moved to the unoccupied couch. She then removed her kunai hair pins and let her hair flow freely to be more comfortable and finally lied down.

"I guess listenin' to yer' ugly voice would be just the thang' I need to go to sleep. It would be like listenin' to a borin' documentary or a political speech."

"Oi oi, my voice isn't ugly. It can never be ugly. My voice is immaculate. Just ask people staring on their monitors at this instant. Isn't that right minna?"

"Fool! This is a fanfiction. Readers won't know what yer' voice sounds like. It's only in the anime where they can hear ya', voiced by _Sugita Tomokazu_. Besides, Kagura – chan told me that you sang really awful durin' the Ghost Inn arc."

Gintoki felt embarrassed when he remembered that moment. He really did suck at singing. What's worse though was that now, that woman knows about it and would just probably start teasing him from now about it. He then made a mental note to himself to remind that alleged daughter of his to learn how to shut her pie hole to people about stuffs like those that happens to them.

"We… well… that was just to send those miserable spirits to the afterlife… you know? They liked it better when the singer offsets the tune of the song." he lied.

Gintoki **(not Sugita)** actually doesn't have the most harmonizing singing voice since he's not into musicwhich he revealed in episode 159. He even got his seiyuu's mother to tell him to do a better job in singing next time since he was doing Gintoki's character. Although, he thought of a loophole into changing that predicament into his advantage

"Besides, who are you to judge my singing huh? I haven't even heard you sing once since we've met. I bet you sing way worse than my intended off tuned singing don't you Tsukki?"

"Tch… that I wouldn't know… I don't sing; hell I'm not even into music."

"Well, that's unfortunate."

Silence had engulfed the room after their conversation about who's the worse singer among them but Tsukuyo still couldn't find herself to go to sleep after what happened earlier. Then it came back to her. The thought of the rightful ruler of Yoshiwara and how he has knowledge about her and Gintoki got her thinking if that person had a connection with what was happening at Yoshiwara and the incident a while ago.

Curious, she decided to ask Gintoki if he might know something about it. But before she could even utter a single word, she suddenly heard light snores coming from his direction. She figured that he was already asleep.

'_That Bastard'_she said to herself. She thought that he would be still up for a little longer sine he was confident a while ago that he was not getting any sleep anytime soon and that she was just going to give herself a hard time waiting for him. Now, he was sleeping peacefully and right when she was about to ask him something important.

In the end, she let him be. He deserved that rest. Besides, he had gone through a lot tonight. Not to mention, he risked himself once again just for her sake. As those thoughts sync in to her mind, her eyes slowly shut as a small smile formed into her face, finally falling into a deep slumber.

* * *

**Class 3 – Z: Ginpachi Sensei Segment:**

* * *

**Ginpachi: **What's up you pieces of shit? I heard you became such a nuisance when I was away last time.

**Shinpachi: **Sensei, what's up with the deep voice and that kway of speech? What also happened with your sense of style? You're wearing a red bandana on your head, grew facial hair and even grew your hair out. Are you copying Zenjuro Saotome from that high school at Ishiyama? **(The teacher of the delinquents in Beelzebub)**

**Ginpachi: **Oi oi, don't compare me with that pervy _jiji _**(old man)**. I don't peep on girls and talk about how hot a woman is during class hours. Hell I don't even smoke you little piece of shit.

**Sougo: **Sensei, isn't that the famous weather person, Ketsuno Ana in a sundress walking at the school yard?

**Ginpachi:** (runs quickly to the window) Where? Where? Where? Eh, no one's outside.

**Everyone: **Ero Sensei… **(a pun on Ero Senin or Jiraiya from Naruto with ero meaning pervy)**

**Ginpachi: **Who are you calling Ero Sensei huh? Tch… let's just go on with the lesson today.

**Kamui:** _Ano_, Ero – Sensei,

**Ginpachi: **Stop calling me Ero – Sensei konoyarou!

**Kamui:** Whatever. Is it really true that I am the ruler of Yoshiwara?

**Ginpachi:** I guess so. According to the wiki and some postss on the internet, I think it was said that you were the one who inherited the position since you were the only student of Houssen.

**Kamui:** Then I can do anything I wanted to do with it right?

**Ginpachi: **Of course you can. Don't tell me you're planning to abuse your power to get all the courtesans to pleasure you all the time.

**Kamui:** That is what you're going to do if you were in my shoes Ero – Sensei.

**Ginpachi:** QUIT IT WITH THE ERO SENSEI WILL YOU!? Anyway, are there any other questions?

**Otae: **Sense, why is it that you don't go to hospitals when you get injured like in the Benizakura Arc when you got stabbed through the stomach?

**Ginpachi:** Good question Otae – san. The most obvious reason of course is money. I don't have enough money to undergo a surgery let alone have a room. Secondly, it seems that you and Shinpachi are capable of medical assistance since you were able to partially close that wound caused by the Benizakura and be able to provide me with a cast in my leg after my fight with Oboro.

**Shinpachi: **Woah, I didn't know that we were capable of such thing that requires years to study in college.

**Gintoki: **Well it's not official anyway and those were just allegations by that lazy – ass author who perceived it to be. Alright then, last question for the day…

**Sacchan: **Sensei, how come Tsukki knows hand to hand combat?

**Ginpachi:** Isn't it mandatory for _shinobis_ to learn the art of _ninjutsu_ for emergency situations like those? Surely you know that right? I'm talking about the martial art here not those fake thingies that uses special effects okay.

**Sacchan:** O… Of course I do… I know the Teddy Bear Hug the Gin – san, the wrap my arms around Gin – san and my favorite, the let my ass be spanked by Gin – san.

**Ginpachi:** I think those are M – _jutsus_.

**Sacchan:** Oh come on sensei, spank me. Spank me real hard. I promise you'll enjoy it…

**Ginpachi:** (grabs Sacchan by the back) How about this? The throw a bitch outside the window _jutsu_

**Sacchan: **WEEEEEEEEEEE!

**Ginpachi:** Tch… What a nuisance.

Suddenly a tap was heard from the door.

**?: **_Ano_, is Ginpachi available? This is Ketsuno Ana… Oh no, I've said it too loud…

**Ginpachi: **What the? Ketsuno Ana is here? And she's looking for me?

**Sougo:** Told you she was here…

**Ginpachi: **Coming Ketsono – san. Ginpachi is always available for y— (as soon as he opened the door, his head was immediately struck by a wine bottle)

** Tsukkiichi:** In your dreams sucka! HAHAHAHAHA

**Kagura: **(Sigh) Tsukkichi – sensei is drunk again – aru. And I thought alcohol is prohibited inside the campus?

**Kamui:** Nice plan with those whisky bonbons earlier, _ne_ Sougo?

**Sougo:** You bet your ass it was. And switching the bottle of soy sauce with Sake, pulled off the trick. (fist bumps with Kamui)

**Ginpachi: **Urgh… Class… Dismissed…

**Tsukkichi:** Wwaaiitt… and… hic.. Wweevviieww… hic… Oi, bring me the whole damn barrel… hic…

* * *

**A/N: **_Okay, that's the end of the Bansai Arc. Still have more Arcs after this and they are going to be longer than this one. I don't know how many though, since I just let the story glow into me. I'll also be probably updating a bit later next time because I'm thinking on making a birthday fic for Gintoki. Well that's all for now I guess. Don't forget to rate and review minna XD_


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